Circus of Fear
by Scarlette Shizuru
Summary: Future Rogue takes over the capital with the warring of ten thousand dragons. Wizards and humans alike are forced to take refuge in the outer cities as he ascends to the throne. He declares a law that makes him king and the dragons his soldiers, causing others to flee. The mages flee and make their way to an island known as Magnus - the Lost Empire. CHP10 up! R&R please
1. Empty Lands and Empty Hearts

**"Circus of Fear"**

**Summary: **Future Rogue destroys and takes over the capital with the warring of ten thousand dragons. Wizards and humans alike are forced to take refuge in the outer cities as the Future Rogue ascends to the throne. He declares a law that makes him king and the dragons his soldiers. The mages captured - robbed of their consciousness and turned into mindless killing machines. All wizards are then forced into hiding and form alliances with one another. Much to everyone's surprise however, Hisui mentions a few friends who come from the other islands surrounding Fiore who may be able to help them from a rebellion group known as the Circus of Fear - a group of veteran and new wizards living in one of the islands. Will Future Rogue continue dominating Fiore or will the world rise up to the challenge? RogueXOC, LaxusXOC and StingXOC

**Me: Hi, it's me again! Yes, the same author who wrote Beyond the Stars! I hope this fanfiction comes out as epic as the last one I recently finished! All criticisms, comments, compliments and reviews are appreciated! I don't own Fairy Tail! I only own the OCs and the plotline of this fanfiction!**

"_Pack all your bags and lock all your doors behind,_

_Clear out the cities and pray for your little lives."_

_-Armor for Sleep, "End of the World" from the Album Smile of Them_

**Chapter 1 – Empty Lands and Hearts**

The land had been turned into a wasteland.

Not even a scorpion was seen moving along the sand dunes.

The land of Fiore had been reduced into nothing but a barren wasteland with mountains and beasts. The skies, glowing greyish blue, had clouds passing by and floating along the skies carelessly. The grass swayed and struggled against the harsh winds. Flowers fell to the ground, wilted. Smaller animals pulled out some roots and plants but before they could do so - a huge claw grabbed them as a loud roar echoed in the air. Winds rushed and howled as a huge creature ascended to the sky as it claws crushed the little critter in its claws. A huge shadow cast itself across the sand and roared to the blazing sunlight, letting its silver scales glimmer under the sun.

"Hurr, not a decent meal," the silver coloured dragon snorted in annoyance, tossing the creature into its mouth anyway. "Where are the humans!?"

Nobody seemed to respond as its stomach began to growl and grumble hungrily for more food. With an annoyed snort, the dragon skimmed and hovered over the blazing sand as it overturned every rock and boulder. Making its way to the mountains, the dragon swiped the tops with its tail and hoped to find some food. No luck there either. The dragon roared angrily before beating its wings and leaving the desert land, empty of any life.

Where was all the life? How did it come to this?

The towns were silent that even a dropping of a pin would break it into life. More cheer could be found in a grave and tumbleweeds rolled along as sand blew past the cities. The houses shut themselves against the blazing heat as some of the windows slammed carelessly against their frames. Clothes and torn sheets of cloth floated lightly against the hot wind and the deep wells once filled with water let out nothing but little trickling drops. Stones let the vines and weeds crush them with their roots as some houses had fallen into nothing but debris. Three little rag dolls lay on the floor as the sands somehow couldn't cover them: one with reddish brown hair, one with light blonde hair and another with multi-coloured hair.

Where was all the life? Where could everyone have gone?

A young man coated with black and white strode through the ghost town in silence with a grim stare. The grass had dried and so had the waters of that one town. Flags of the guilds had been ripped and some fell to the ground, letting the sun blaze and burn away their colours. He stomped on it in annoyance, wrinkling his nose as the dry air brushed against his skin. He couldn't believe that every town had been emptied out. That was the fourth town he managed to find, empty! His hand curled into a fist before walking away and turning towards a group of hooded people.

"I want you to check every place in this disgusting land mass," he scowled angrily, kicking a rock towards one of the walls. "Find every human left and bring them to me."

They all bowed in synchronized unison. "It shall be done, Ryos-_sama_."

No longer Rogue, the male scowled as he heard his true name being used. He wasn't just the Shadow Dragonslayer any longer; he had become more powerful - the White Shadow Dragonslayer! He no longer needed that blonde bumbling idiot who shamed the name of Dragon slaying! He was strong but his intelligence could not even defeat a rock! Using the name Rogue brought out bitter memories - the destruction and loss of many lives, Fairy Tail's triumph that resulted into the apocalypse and the arrival of the seven dragons. All he had to do is wrench the gates open once more with his own power and with the residue of the Celestial Spirits' magic remaining; he wrenched the doors forcefully with the lever and his own magic density. Continuing to look at the war-torn land and barren city, Ryos walked away with a dark smirk before unleashing a white and black blast that ripped and reduced the village into nothing by ruins.

"Where is all the life," Ryos chuckled maliciously and strode past a dying weed, stomping on it mercilessly. "Heh whoops. That was the last of it."

However, he did not spot the small green shoot growing behind one of the rocks nor did he spot the white smoke rising into the air.

At the ports at the coastal area near Fiore, wizards immediately brought their necessities and their valuables with them before boarding the huge ship carrying them away. Running away from the dragons was no easy task; their scents were all over the place but that's what made it confusing. The other wizards looked sadly back at their homeland before shaking their heads with broken hearts.

They gave it their all but even their all was not enough.

Disheartened and defeated, they all headed onto the ship. Nobody had the heart to leave the prisoners behind as some of the dark wizards and criminals made their way into another ship. People stayed by the metal walls and began sharing their food with one another while the fire wizards went to engine rooms to power up the ship with steam and cook the food. Thunder-based wizards gave electricity and ice wizards functioned as air conditioners. Waters began to turn as the water wizards immediately began controlling the rushing tides that began to toss their ships to and fro.

Two small girls began running around with other healers to heal wounds, deal with sea sickness and other motion sickness especially the Dragonslayers. Ultear had begun distributing rations as well and the Magic Council although they were reluctant had been forced to accept help from them - Crime Sorciére. Despite being severely horrified and useless on moving transportation, the Dragonslayers felt more ashamed and defeated rather than ready to hurl out their last meal.

"I can't believe it - we got beaten by that idiot," the blonde Dragonslayer spat in annoyance and slammed hist fist against the metal walls, feeling a slight urge to throw up but kicked it back out of frustration. "Who was that guy!? How the hell did he manage to wrench open the gates like that!?"

Nobody had an answer as Rogue sat next to him, keeping Frosch warm under his cloak. Sting cradled Lector close to him as well as the sea wind chilled them to the bone. Natsu had been using his flame to warm up everyone as the women started bringing out food. Minerva had been tasked to handle that as well and from being a king, it wasn't easy. Rufus went up to the bridge to join in the navigation and Orga powered up one of the engines. Mirajane kindly attended to people with the Trimen of Blue Pegasus as many of them started helping out the other males in the war.

"We can't give up now, we can still push him to a corner," Natsu stamped his foot on the ground, staring determinedly at all the wizards. "WE HAVE SEVEN DRAGONSLAYERS! DRAGONSLAYER MAGIC WAS MADE FOR THIS! WE CAN'T JUST RUN AWAY!"

Nobody looked up but some looked up at him with a helpless look in their eyes. The dragons had rid them of everything; what was there left to fight for?

"Natsu," Makarov tried to silence the pink haired Dragonslayer. "That's enough..."

"Gramps, we can't just give up to this guy," Natsu swung his arm to gesture to all the wizards on board. "WE HAVE ENOUGH FIRE POWER TO MAKE THAT BASTARD GO DOWN! I'M ALL FIRED UP FOR THIS!"

Makarov shook his head, looking at the deep gash he had earned from one of the dragons. "Natsu, that's enough!'

The pink haired Dragonslayer shut his mouth as the old small man sighed deeply.

"I know you want to end this. I know you never run away from battle but Natsu," Makarov suppressed his anger and annoyance with their loss. "A smart warrior always gets home in one piece. We're only regrouping, we're not running away."

"Yeah and clearly Salamander doesn't have the brain to process that," Sting scoffed with a condescending sneer, folding his arm.

Without a warning, Natsu lunged towards Sting and slugged him with enough force to send him falling down to the ground. "SAY THAT AGAIN, YOU PARENT-SLAYING BASTARD!"

Now that got Sting's blood boiling as he prepared to throw a fist. "You're clearly lacking a brain, asshole!"

The two dragon slayers immediately got into a brawl after being newly patched up by the healers. Natsu slugged Sting's jaw as the blonde dragon slayer kicked Natsu's gut. Their fists flew as people shook their heads in defeat. Their egos were bruised and the defeat to seven dragons horrified them. Makarov could still feel the fear that shook through him when Atlas the Hellfire Dragon had faced Fairy Tail. Gray gripped the bandages bound around his body as Juvia clung to him not in her usual affectionate way but out of fear, prompting him to wrap his arm around her. Lucy shivered and tears began to freely pour down her face as Levy embraced her as well. The dragons were a completely different story...

Suddenly, a huge wave of magic knocked everyone down as Jiemma stomped his feet hard on the ground. "ENOUGH!"

Sting and Natsu immediately stopped as they shuddered at the force of Jiemma's magic. Seeing that the man managed to survive from his impaling blast and Natsu's flaming rage the first time, Sting and Natsu knew that they should shut up now before he could break their necks. The man stood taller than both of them and Sting remembered how a mere kick sent him sprawling onto the ground in pain. He winced at the thought before retreating in silence.

"Fighting will not get us anywhere," Hisui suddenly emerged from behind the crowd, sadly shaking her head. "This whole thing is my fault... I brought these dragons into this world and now, I should be paying for the mistake."

"NO SHIT IT IS!"

"YEAH, WHY DON'T WE JUST THROW HER OVERBOARD!?"

"Infidels, how dare you," Arcadios emerged from the crowd and pulled out his blade while standing in front of the princess, angrily staring them down. "The princess had nothing but noble intentions to protect Fiore! You all would've done the same if someone had told you that the apocalypse is coming! Would the fear of dying have not seized you as well!?"

Soon, arguments and blames flew back and forth as every mage started going in an uproar. Lucy stayed on one side with Yukino as both of them hung their heads shamefully. Although they managed to seal the gates, they were not fast enough. Who knew seven dragons had enough power and that the Future Rogue had the ability to rip open the gates with sheer magical brute force? The blonde Celestial Wizard finally had enough and frustrated with everyone else, stood up before finally raising her voice.

"THAT'S ENOUGH! WILL YOU GUYS SHUT UP!?"

Everyone suddenly remained silent as one of the wizards sneered sardonically. "What do you want, weakling!? Why should we listen to you?"

Lucy staggered back at the insult before biting her lip anxiously. The condescending gazes and murmurs glared daggers at her as the blonde found herself unable to find the voice to speak. She knew that she had constantly lost her events but really - did they have to rub it in? The blonde Celestial Spirit mage backed up while watching everyone glare daggers at her, hanging her head shamefully. However, Minerva emerged from the crowd with a calm expression and stood in the middle. Everyone shivered and cowered at her calm composure, knowing what kind of power she carried in her system. One wrong move and she'd torture them until she was content.

"Now I think the trash over here has a point. Fighting amongst ourselves will just get us killed," Minerva glared stonily at the other male wizards, particularly at Sting and Natsu. "I suggest we find some land where we can regroup and live for awhile until we find some way to claim our homeland."

Rufus tipped his hat and lay out a map with his magic, revealing two islands. "We are an hour away from one of Fiore's islands. On one island, there is the city known as the City of Magnus. The wizard to human ratio is currently at 3:2. We should be able to establish some homes there for now."

Hisui's eyes widened for a moment upon recognizing the name. "The City of Magnus...?"

"The Ancient Empire that had been so prosperous that every archaeologist had been struggling to find it. Their rivers flowed with fresh water everyday and some wizards could transform rocks into gold or anything they choose. Food was never too badly scarce," Lucy stared in awe and astonishment, remembering the many legends surrounding it. "Only those with magic were able to locate the city but how did normal humans make their way there?"

Hisui shook her head darkly, looking at the map carefully. "We did not know that the island was still inhabited by a huge empire and many of the excommunicated members of the Fiore Empire were shipped there. We should make our way there - perhaps we can ask for some aid and refuge."

"But you said yourself, there are criminals there," Bacchus frowned deeply, taking another swig of beer. "Although, there is one urban legend I've heard about that island."

Hisui blinked at the Drunken Falcon of Quattro Cerberus, staring questioningly at the man. "What would that be? How true could it be?"

"Hey, hear me out before shooting me down. The legend of the Circus of Fear," Bacchus let out a disgruntled snort and clasped his hands together, looking intently at everyone as people began to gather around.

"A god had created two people who were both gifted in magic. In doing so, they got into an argument in which one was stronger and had a better philosophy. Thus, there were two warring factions - one was the Fiore Dynasty and the other was the Magnus Dynasty. The two factions had two different beliefs: while Fiore wanted to use magic for profit and weaponry, Magnus believed in abiding to the laws of nature and not defying the divinity of the god who had granted them power. When the war occurred, the Magnus Dynasty refused to spill blood and had retreated to an island which the founder named it after himself - Magnus. Descendants from his line involve thirteen noble families and these thirteen formed the legendary Circus of Fear. It is said that their power could make dragons look like household lizards."

Everyone remained silent in astonishment at the rumoured strength of the Circus of Fear. Before one could ask a question, the whole ship suddenly shuddered and began teetering over as grappling hooks pierced through the hull of the ship. The metal burst open and glowed with an orange ember but not before a wall suddenly block their way. Missiles and lasers smashed through the ship as a blue flame burned through the mast. Vines sprouted from the ground and began crushing the boats and even metal drones suddenly appeared with a single red eye and began firing lasers. People panicked as more attacks started raining in and mirrors started surrounding them, swirling quickly. The mages' eyes widened in fear as shades and white armoured creatures emerged from the mirrors, rushing in to attack them.

"Bastards," Gray prepared to unleash an ice blast until missiles prepared to shoot them clear out of the sky. "Tch, they found us!?"

Minerva summoned a space blast to catch one of the missiles and throw it away, gritting her teeth in annoyance. "Don't just stand there, get moving!"

All the wizards scrambled as the other ships got attacked with more lasers and missiles. Erza leapt high into the air with her swords swatting the blades away and Natsu unleashed a huge flamethrower and burned whatever flew towards them. Gray had his lances targeting the incoming missiles while Lyon had summoned a dragon to freeze the shots. Suddenly, mirrors appeared as blasts started flying back at them with Gajeel's Iron Dragon Roar flying straight at Levy. The Iron Dragonslayer immediately jumped in front of Levy and took a full on beating while Rogue prepared to cover for him as well with his shadows engulfing more attacks.

"Tch, this is getting ugly," Sting unleashed a bigger white blast.

Rogue chuckled lightly before rushing past the other droids with his Shadow Sneak attack. "You don't say."

Sting unleashed his white lasers against the mirrors and used their deflection to attack the other creatures but where were the attacks coming from? All the wizards found themselves forced on the offensive as the fog continued to mask their opponents other than the white armoured creatures. Rufus summoned tornados as they raged through the skies until everyone noticed a loud rumbling and bright blue flash exploding from the grey skies. A blue flame shot at him from the sky as Natsu inhaled to eat it, grinning in delight. His eyes widened as it began to sear his insides when a blue bolt of lightning sent him flying to the walls.

"Natsu," Lucy jumped in to help while flinging her whip to deflect another blast, activating her keys with Juvia's Water Lock. "GATE TO THE WATER BEARER I OPEN THEE, AQUARIUS!"

The blue haired mermaid emerged before glaring at Lucy, preparing to wash her away. "What do you want now, bitch!? I was having a date with Scorpio!"

Before Lucy could say anything, a blue flame screeched and slammed into the wooden floors of the boat as the ship began to teeter dangerously on one side. "AQUARIUS, FLOOD THE WHOLE PLACE!"

"Tch," Aquarius scowled before hurling her urn and throwing a huge blast of water, tossing and throwing the howling waves. "YOU STUPID PESTS, HOW DARE YOU MAKE THAT IDIOT INTERRUPT MY DATE WITH SCORPIO!"

The water suddenly surged into the air as the boat began tossing around much to the horror of the Dragonslayers.

"Everyone, hang on," Lucy grabbed onto one of the masts as all the wizards found themselves being tossed around by Aquarius' raging waves.

Lightning crackled until it suddenly struck directly on the mast and set the ship ablaze. The Dragonslayers were rendered useless the moment the ship teetered over even more and nearly sent them all sprawling and sliding across the port. Rogue struggled to keep his stance and dodged the flying lasers and blue flames shooting towards him, swooning around until he crashed on the ground. Gajeel hissed and struggled to keep his lunch in only to vomit it out and fall on the ground as well.

"Tch," Laxus grunted as the ship began tossing and turning around. "Stupid motion sickness...!"

Laxus staggered as his mind began to swirl, desperately trying to fire a lightning bolt without much success. Bixlow had his "babies" head straight for the metal drones to force it into submission only to have it suddenly self-destruct on him. His puppets' lasers aimed at the drones to destroy them until a mirror suddenly appeared and redirected the lasers at him, forcing him to crash into Evergreen. Elfman had changed into a huge golem and began grabbing the missiles and tossing them away while Alzack had gone off to protect Asuka while Bisca unleashed her own volley of bullets. Freed immediately summoned his magic runes to create walls and shields only to have a mirror appear past the rune wall, allowing more attacks to fire directly.

"Tch, Ice Make: Lance," Gray fired a volley of ice attacks into the air as it smashed into the droids. "Shit, where are all these coming from?!"

"Fire Dragon Roar," Natsu unleashed a huge flame towards where the lightning had been coming from, creating a huge explosion. "OH YEAH!"

Before he could celebrate however, a blue flame suddenly burst through the sky and burned away his skin. Natsu winced in agony as he tried to make his way through the flames as the fire crackled and tried to burn him alive. His eyes widened as he began inhaling the blue flames only to have it freeze him from the inside, prompting him to vomit it out in a huge flamethrower. He grunted slightly at the burning sensation – since when did people learn how to make blue flames before? He had never seen such a thing. Natsu engulfed his fists in flames before punching one of the creatures and kicking another that attacked him from behind. Letting out a huge fireball, Natsu dodged another creature's attempt to slash him before burning it down with a full Iron Fist. Kagura and Erza fought back to back with their blades singing into the air and deflecting lasers and chopping down droids. Suddenly, something swooped in with abominable speed and easily tore off the hull of the boat as a loud roar echoed in the air.

"What now," Lyon turned around with his eyes widening. "Shit, shit, shit, we have a problem!"

Everyone spun around and found a huge bluish draconic-like creature rise from the waves. The Dragonslayers immediately redirected their attacks towards the dragon as a huge flame burst towards them. With a single beat of its large wings, it launched itself into the air. Sting rushed towards it before launching himself into the air. The creature bucked back as Sting grabbed hold on its horn.

"Sting-_kun_," Lector yelped as the whole boat began to rock again, throwing the Dragonslayers back.

"Urgh," Sting grunted and struggled to hang on as the draconic creature began bucking and flying around. "M-motherfucker... Urgh..."

He could feel the motion-sickness resist spells wearing off before gaining some stability on top of the dragon's back. Pushing back the urge to vomit, Sting unleashed a white beam from his hand as he began attacking the dragon's back. He ran across all the way to the tail as his laser slashed the creature's back.

"White Dragon's Laser Claw," Sting fought the nausea and swung down another white laser down on the dragon's back.

The dragon roared and bucked around in attempt to throw him off but Sting ran past the spikes and spines on the dragon's back before taking a leap of faith. Finally off, Sting inhaled deeply before unleashing a huge White Dragon Roar as the huge dinosaur dragon howled in agony but not before swatting him with his tail. Sting flew straight towards the water as Lector immediately sprouted his wings with _Aera_ and dashed for his partner.

"Sting-_kun_," Lector rushed to his partner's aid fearfully, never actually had carried the said blonde before but he was going to try. "Huh?"

All of a sudden, a blue comet shot out and grabbed Sting before he touched the water before throwing him back onto the ship. Lector rushed back to his partner's side as the blue comet suddenly revealed a person as the blue fires died down. As the person stood up, Sting groaned in agony as the ship started rocking back and forth.

"Who are you," Natsu glared at the person who dropped Sting back onto the ship, flaring up his own fists. "WHERE THE HELL DID YOU... URGH..."

The Fire Dragonslayer suddenly slumped over much to the shock of everyone until a blue flame and mirrors started attacking the huge mastodon creature. The person who had saved Sting faced the creature before propelling himself into the air with blue flames and began flying around and unleashing bigger blue flames. Machines and huge mechanized humanoid suits started rushing in and firing a whole barrage of lasers. The mages, exhausted, could only stare at the flames and lasers firing out. The mirrors appeared in front of them as the dragon unleashed a huge flame that nearly shattered the mirror but deflected it nonetheless. The dragon howled before moving away as the seas slowly calmed down.

"We're alive," Makarov glanced around, looking at his guild members. "Is everyone alright?"

Everyone struggled and clambered up onto their feet, nodding shakily.

"Yeah, we should be fine."

"I think my butt's broken."

"Thank God it stopped moving!"

As soon as everyone got up, Lucy swallowed hard as the fog began to lift only to realize they were surrounded by huge mechanical robots and droids. War ships soon followed with a flag with a book surrounded by laurel leaves. That must be Magnus' insignia; Lucy bit her lower lip anxiously as she slowly proceeded to reach her keys. Where did these weird creatures come from? Before she could pull out a key, a laser bullet shot at her feet.

"NOBODY MOVE!"

_They can talk!?_

She rubbed her eyes and shook her head – no this wasn't some sick sci-fi movie that just popped out of nowhere but why were there metal robots running around? Although never a fan of science fiction genre, Lucy shivered fearfully upon noticing the huge cannons mounted on the droids' shoulders. Droids suddenly rolled in a wheel before rolling out towards them with two guns each pointed at them. The other droids and other metal robotic creatures closed in on them and surrounded them with their guns. Natsu was pinned down to the ground with the other Dragonslayers except for Laxus who the robots preferably chose not to touch after seeing little yellow lights sparking from his body. However, before they could say anything - a loud voice thundered through the air.

"WHO DARES TRESSPASS ON OUR WATERS!?"

/\/\/\/\/\/\

**That's Chapter 1 to start off! Please don't forget to review!**


	2. Don't Mess With Me

**Me: Hi, it's me again! Yes, the same author who wrote Beyond the Stars! Thank you for all the reviews so far and remember: the more reviews, alerts and favourites, the easier for me to cater to your tastes for this fanfiction and also the FASTER I will update. I hope this fanfiction comes out as epic as the last one I recently finished! All criticisms, comments, compliments and reviews are appreciated! I don't own Fairy Tail! I only own the OCs and the plotline of this fanfiction! Thanks to SapphireWitch13 for pointing out my grammatical errors! **

_"Hot and dangerous  
If you're one of us, then roll with us."_

_-Ke$ha/Kesha, We R Who We R from the Album Cannibal_

**Chapter 2 - Don't Mess With Me**

At the sound of the loud thundering voice, everyone swivelled their head towards one of the warships that stood right in front of them. A plank slammed down as a scrawny tall tan-skinned man with a moustache and a tall purple top hat strode towards them. His violet tail coat billowed behind him as he tapped his walking cane on the wood with every stride. He tousled in his curly moustache before adjusting his black pinstripe pants that had been cuffed by his boots. As he tipped his hat and revealed the same insignia as the one on the flag pinned onto the sash, he shiftily glared at them before looking at their flag. He disgustedly glanced at their clothing and at their tattoos on their arms, shaking his head in disdainfully.

"Humph, no wonder you people can't barely fight a dragon! Your capacity as wizards were not as amazing as ours," he snorted haughtily with a fold of his arms, rolling his eyes and examining the others.

Natsu set his flames ablaze as he prepared to lunge at the man, spitting venomously. "SAY THAT AGAIN, YOU BASTARD!"

Before Natsu could jump towards him, Erza had immediately drawn out her sword and glared at the man intently. "We can't fight him right now, Natsu. We're overpowered. They have a whole fleet and we are only five ships – three of those ships containing normal civilians. If we push the issue, those metal creatures can shoot them down without mercy."

"But Erza...!"

"No buts, Natsu," Erza firmly gripped her blade and waited for Natsu to defy her until he lowered his fists and dismissed the flames, allowing her to change back into her normal armour. "Forgive us; we simply wanted to ask for refuge..."

"WHO ARE YOU TO ASK SUCH A THING," the man thundered disdainfully while looming over Erza with a haughty sneer, poking her with his walking cane in disgust. "You citizens of the Fiore Island have no home on this island! Leave at once!"

Erza bit her lower lip darkly and anxiously, watching the man stare beadily at her for a moment. "Please, we are only asking for a small passageway. We do not intend to..."

"PREPOSTEROUS, LIES – FILTHY LIES," the man flippantly dismissed her as he bludgeoned Erza with his cane, sending her to the ground. "You are not welcome here!"

Already weakened from the last fight, Erza actually fell down to the ground without much resistance. Her hands managed to cushion her fall but her cheek began to swell with a bright red colour. Fairy Tail immediately gawked in admonishment before preparing to unleash their magic on him, glaring. Natsu prepared to jump and burn the man down but not until Lucy held him back and pointed at the robots that could gun them down any minute. The robots however had pointed their guns at them, scaring them into submission. Jellal fumed deep down, watching the man's eyes carefully. His hand began to pulse with magic but he immediately shut it down and shoved people away to get to Erza. No one – NO ONE HITS ERZA LIKE THAT WHILE HE'S STILL STANDING AND BREATHING!

"Erza," Jellal immediately rushed to her side, glaring at the man. "Tch, why you...!"

Gray darkly began to conjure some frost on his hands, ready throw whatever he had in mind at him. "Look, she's already asking nicely! Get that stick out of your fat ass and at least hear us out!"

The man sneered maliciously at Gray as he jabbed his walking stick against Gray's chest, suddenly revealing a magenta coloured enchantment circle. "You be silent, boy! I have no reason to listen to mongrels such as you, non?"

With one tap of his walking stick, the enchantment circle suddenly exploded and sent Gray flying towards the back. All the wizards stepped aside as Juvia darted after him in her water form, preparing to soften Gray's impact. The man scowled darkly as Gray landed in Juvia's arms before snorting condescendingly.

"Dogs should stay silent especially when the master has arrived," the Ringmaster twirled around his moustache with a haughty smirk.

Soon, everyone noticed that the skies were becoming darker and rain began to pour. All those who knew what Juvia was capable of could only wonder if the man had a death wish for hurting Gray or he was just inexplicably stupid to continue goading them. The rain poured harder as Juvia slowly began to rise up to her feet with a satanic glare in her eyes.

"How dare you hurt Gray-_sama_," Juvia's voice sinking eerily low and demonic as the waves began to rush and crash against the ship.

The Ringmaster barely looked intimidated as he summoned more magic circles, chuckling darkly as the thunder crackled. "Women like you should know your place!"

Before he could say anything, a blue lightning bolt suddenly shot in between them and caused the two to stagger back. They stared in shock as they heard a snigger from behind.

"Well, that totally merited you the award "douche-bag of the year"."

The ringmaster hissed in annoyance as the person who saved Sting suddenly emerged from the crowd. "Excellion, you...!"

"My plan – every movement and every manoeuvre was perfectly calculated," the person slowly pulled off the visor helmet with an annoyed and aloof tone, revealing a girl with layered wavy reddish brown hair and amber honey brown eyes. "We practically knew how to subdue them. Take down their tanks and with a bit of effort, chase away a dragon. We weren't supposed to take them as prisoners and we were only to take out their weapons. Now, there was one little factor I forgot to consider – you're a fucking dumbass. And there is no possible known method to account for your dumbass-ness."

Everyone gawked at the appearance of the girl. How in the world was she able to carry Sting while managing to fight the dragon? She had an athletic build but Lector could only stare in astonishment at how much more athletic looking she was in comparison to most of the female wizards. Sure Minerva had the curves and as Sting called it "melons for racks" and all but this girl looked like she had been built for combat. Well-toned and everything.

_Damn, a woman saved me?_

Sting managed to weakly raise his head despite his motion sickness forcing him to vomit his innards. He found himself lying down on the ground next to tall young woman with a cobalt blue turtle neck, navy blue loose military pants and black combat shoes. Her shirt looked more like it was made of latex, emphasizing heavily on her curves. Her fingerless long gloves had shiny metal bracelets clamped on her wrists with a black belt wrapped around them and also one on her waist.

"KNOW YOUR PLACE, FLAME DANCER," The ringmaster scowled darkly and pointed the walking cane at her venomously until a blue lightning bolt sparked from her two fingertips and cracked at his feet. "Yiii!"

"Fuck. You're being pretty arrogant for a low-class piece of shit," the Flame Dancer strode towards him before giving him the bad finger, smirking arrogantly. "Now, I don't give a flying fuck if you're the Queen's favourite boy toy since that was the only possible way a sack of crap like you could become the Ringmaster. So go cry yourself to sleep, you sack of shit."

The soldiers standing behind the Ringmaster stared in admonishment as he stormed towards her. "You little...!"

Before he could swing his cane at her, two droids suddenly marched up to him with their guns pointed at him and ready to fire. "Wha – you dare defy me?! Puppet Master, order your disgraceful rust buckets to back down now! Otherwise, they'll be nothing but a heap of scrap useless metal!"

"Goddamn it, order your own face – you stupid old fart!"

Everyone looked up and found a black hooded black haired girl landing on the upper level of the boat with gleaming bright royal violet eyes with an annoyed snort, rolling her eyes and smoothing out her crimson red _Hua Yin_ Dress. Laxus stared in amazement and in awe as the infantry class droids suddenly stood erect with their guns in military position with a salute. She strode forward as each droid lifted and pressed the gun barrels against their chests as if greeting their commander.

"Damn, another loony," Laxus muttered under his breath with an annoyed scowl, narrowing his eyes at the small form.

"Save it, Buzz Lightyear."

Laxus could only gawk; how the heck did she hear him from that kind of distance?

The black hooded girl sniggered and strode forward proudly, folding her arms. "Yeah you heard me, Buzz Boy. I don't got time to deal with an Energizer Bunny like you."

"How dare you insult," Fried stepped forward until the droids closed in on him and pointed their guns at him. "Tch...!"

The Puppet Master snickered at the long green haired Rune Master. "Shut up, Salad Head. I don't take orders from you nor do I care who the hell Buzz Lightyear really is. Oh wait, he's from Fairy Tail. Hmm, maybe Tinkerbell's more suitable..."

Laxus, fighting back his urge to lunge and strike her, couldn't help but notice how she stood a bit shorter next to the Flame Dancer. She strode down the stairs with a haughty smirk before lowering her hood, revealing a more child-like face. She brushed back her slightly jagged black hair, swishing away her bangs. The blonde Dragonslayer noticed more droids take a defensive formation around her followed by two small floating drones the moment she snapped her fingers.

"You don't talk that way to me, peasant," the Puppet Master lazily leaned against the railing of the ship, snorting in annoyance. "I have better things to do than listen to your incessant whining."

"YOU DARE ADDRESS YOUR SUPERIOR AS A PEASANT!? I ought to have you stripped of your rank, you little wretch," the ringmaster fumed angrily, raising his cane until a bright blue beam blasted at him. "Argh!"

Everyone stared in amazement at Nina who suddenly summoned big metal gauntlets encasing her hand with a glowing circle in the middle of her palm. "I don't care, you Lily Liver. Next time, I'll blast off your whole head!"

The Ringmaster suddenly summoned several magenta coloured circles, throwing out huge force blasts. "YOU WHORES, KNOW YOUR PLACE!"

As the blasts smashed into them, the Ringmaster sneered darkly at the smoke that rose into the air. Much to his surprise however, he instead found a huge mirror glowing magenta and humming a low sound. The mirror then lifted up and redirected the blast towards somewhere else. Furious, the Ringmaster slammed his cane on the ground and howled accusingly.

"ILLUSIONIST, DO YOU DARE DEFY ME AS WELL!?"

Meekly and cautiously, a blonde gypsy girl slowly peeked out from behind and twiddled with her thumbs as bells and trinkets clinked against one another with her hiding behind the Flame Dancer and the Puppet Master. The Illusionist dusted her light lavender skirt with her dark violet gypsy sash tinkling with gold trinkets and medals, fixing her white tight off shouldered blouse. Rogue's eyes widened as she smiled demurely, looking at the other wizards before dismissing the mirror that had deflected the other attacks.

_So, she's the mirror wizard._

Rogue glanced at her as she meekly smiled and let her mirrors vanish and prepare for an all out defense if ever. In comparison to her two comrades, she had a more kind and soft demeanour. She chided her two teammates as the taller and more muscular girl began scowling at her, snorting in annoyance about something like "respecting the Ringmaster even if he is a gay fucktard". The black haired girl on the other hand yawned and waved her hand dismissively, muttering about something about him "being dumber than a trash can". The blonde frowned slightly before pinching both girls' ears, causing both girls to yelp and whine. He cringed slightly and felt his own ears, shivering at the thought of having them pinched. These girls were responsible for taking out a fleet?! Was that even possible!?

"I-I'm sorry but didn't the king say to bring them back alive and not harmed," the Illusionist whacked the two girls' heads together, earning her an "ow" and glare from both girls. "Guys, come on. Be nice."

"How about no," the Puppet Master let out a disgruntled snort, firing a spit ball at the Ringmaster's eye. "Heh, bull's eye!"

"YOU WRETCH," the Ringmaster howled angrily as he wiped away the spit from his eye until a blue flame suddenly roared in front of him, noticing Kevyn smirking sardonically at him. "Yiii!"

"ISABELA CAROL, STOP THROWING LOOGIES AND WATCH YOUR MANNERS," the Illusionist stared aghast at the Puppet Master, shaking her head distastefully at both the Puppet Master and the Flame Dancer. "Kevyn, stop goading him!"

"Heh, I'm so attractive aren't I," Isabela smirked with an arrogant flip of her hair, cracking her knuckles with a devious grin. "Maybe I should Chris Brown his face and do the rest of the world a favour!"

The droids immediately turned against him with a snap of her fingers with all their guns pointed at him. Sputtering angrily, the Ringmaster stormed towards Isabela and Kevyn until lightning bolts and lasers cracked at his feet.

The Flame Dancer smirked darkly, letting more blue flames appear in her palms. "Like I give a flying fuck."

The Illusionist could only groan at the two girls, bowing apologetically to the Ringmaster. She glanced at Isabel who had a huge maniacal grin on her face as she prepared to snap her fingers and her own enchantment circle appeared. The droids prepared to fire and the blonde knew that one snap of her fingers will puncture the skinny man full of holes.

"Ready, set, _fuego (Fire!),_" Isabela was about to snap her fingers until a mirror box suddenly appeared and encased her, floating in the air. "WHAT THE-!?"

Kevyn charged up electricity at the tip of her two fingers and prepared to launch it until a mirror box encased itself around her. "What the fuck...!"

Everyone stared in astonishment as the gypsy twiddled with her thumbs, looking at everyone. Marina couldn't believe her teammates were such loose cannons but then again, she was talking to someone who had an attention span of a goldfish and someone who basically unleashed her wrath by burning everything into nothing. She swallowed hard before bowing humbly and apologetically to the rest of the people.

"I-I'm sorry! Please excuse them!"

"EXCUSE YOUR FACE," Isabela kicked the mirror walls before the impact bounced back at her, prompting her to tumble over inside the box. "MARINA KRISTALLNACHT, YOU BETCH! GET ME OUT OF THIS," - suddenly, a bird flew past them. "Ooh, a seagull..."

Everyone sweat-dropped for a few moments as Isabela stared absentmindedly at the seagull flew by. Was this the same girl who had just punched Natsu into a glass cube?

"Fuck," Kevyn on the other hand proceeded to unleash a bright blue flame that began to burst against the box, engulfing the encased vicinity until the flame suddenly just died out. "STOP DEPRIVING MY FLAMES OF OXYGEN, YOU FAT-ASS!"

Marina smiled with as-a-matter-of-factly expression, wagging her finger and gently chiding the two girls. "You two asked for it."

Nina summoned two magic circles and revealed a huge mech gauntlets. "DON'T YOU DARE PUT WORDS IN MY MOUTH, PEASANT!"

"SCREW YOU," blue flames roared and danced around Kevyn's body.

"Well, Isabela - if you didn't punch commander like that, you wouldn't be in the box. Also, ," Marina smiled sweetly, laughing softly. "Sorry, I don't swing that way, Kevyn."

Isabela chuckled lightly at Kevyn, folding her arms with an impish pout. "Ooh, burn."

Letting out an annoyed snort, Flame Dancer unleashed a bigger blue flame and nearly shattered the mirror before flashing her the bad finger. "GO FUCK YOURSELF IN A DITCH!"

Marina whistled as she winced from the flashing light and impact from the blue flames. "Whoops, sensitive."

The other mages could only sweat-drop at the sight of the two mages put in separated mirror boxes although the blue flames scared their lights out. However, the Ringmaster smiled sardonically before facing the other wizards, looking how destroyed the ship was. All the anchors had burst through the hull of the ship and many of the masts had been destroyed. The wizards staggered back and barely could keep themselves standing, massaging and covering some of their bruises.

_They do not dare fight back._

The Ringmaster chuckled gleefully to himself; he could still have his head held high when he would present them to the king. People still believed he was a war hero and a true heroic commander. With the massive army standing behind him and the robots with their guns, the skinny man beat his chest proudly before sniggering at the pathetic state of the other mages. He chuckled lightly before gesturing to his soldiers.

"Cuff them up and make sure they don't get away," he sneered coldly before walking away.

Before the soldiers could move in, Marina stepped in with her mirrors and smiled kindly. "Don't worry. I'll handle it. You guys go on ahead as escorts. I'm sure the robots will do their job."

Isabela scowled darkly as she kicked the glass container holding her in. "Yeah yeah, wait until I get out of here and high five you in the face, betch!"

Kevyn on the other hand clucked her tongue in annoyance and folded her arms, glaring daggers at the glass box. "Tch, whatever."

With a snap of her fingers, Marina dismissed the glass box as it disappeared and let the two other members fall to the ground with a loud _thud_. She giggled lightly as Isabela shot her withering glare and Kevyn straightened herself out before preparing to throw another fireball at the Ringmaster only to have a glass box encase her hand. In annoyance, the Flame Dancer dropped all her desire to burn him before walking to the other mages. Marina started pushing out the anchors that had imbedded themselves into the ship's hull and wooden railings while Isabela just kicked out another anchor before hauling it over board.

"Sheesh, he didn't have to go overboard like the flamboyant bastard he is," Isabela snorted in annoyance, snapping her fingers and summoning worker droids. "Droids, make sure this ship gets to Magnus in one piece and we're gonna upgrade this piece of junk."

The droids started bustling around while some of the guard droids helped the other mages on their feet. The soldiers remained on guard as their spears were pointed at them. Some of the soldiers walked towards them and roughly grabbed them before dragging them along. The weakened wizards trudged along as they noticed the fog lifting up and revealing twenty other warships sailing towards them with more soldiers. Erza's eyes widened as she even found blimps and jet planes hovering above them and preparing to attack. She stared stupidly; where did they manage to get the technology to create such formidable and horrifying weaponry? Lucy had been cuffed as some of the soldiers grinned maliciously at her.

"He-he, this one looks cute," the soldier poked her breasts as he gagged the Celestial Wizard's mouth shut, chuckling darkly. "You think the Commander can let us keep her?"

"I got a couple of belts we can use and maybe a pair of handcuffs," another soldier grinned darkly, taking Lucy's keys.

Natsu's eyes widened with horror as he found Lucy being surrounded by five different guys. He watched Lucy trying to struggle and kick away but the shackles refused to give her any mobility. Her mouth was gagged and he could feel his chest threatening to burst. His blood boiled and he could feel fire burning through every fibre in his body. His nerves screaming for him to move forward and wrench Lucy out of their grip started heating up his body. The way they were touching her body and poking at her with that malicious grin on their face.

_STOP TOUCHING LUCY!_

His vision became clouded with red as everything else deafened around him except Lucy's and his heartbeat. The motion sickness faded away into nothing as his black eyes narrowed dangerously into bright red draconic slits and his human teeth suddenly sharpened into fangs. His arm slowly became covered with red scales as a fire suddenly burst from his body.

"Hey," Natsu unleashed a huge flame from his fists, kicking the droids away with a furious roar. "Let Lucy go!"

A huge fire blew the droids away as Natsu raged towards the other droids holding Lucy. Flames burst around his body and his expression invited Death along for the ride. The soldiers immediately put up their spears, panic-stricken by the sudden lunge from the Fire Dragonslayer. Their eyes widened in fear as Natsu prepared to unleash a huge flame in their face as his enchantment circles suddenly appeared beneath him. His arms were engulfed in huge flames as he launched himself straight towards the soldiers with his fists ready to pummel them.

"FIRE DRAGON'S WING TALON SLASH," Natsu swung his arms down with the dragon flames howling angrily.

Everything then suddenly happened in a blur. As Natsu lunged towards them, his eyes widened when he found the Flame Dancer suddenly appear right in front him with a cold glare. Isabela on the other hand appeared behind him as Kevyn flipped over for a butterfly kick laced in blue fire while Isabela clobbered him with a right hook. Natsu tumbled backwards as a glass box appeared and locked him inside with another glass box encasing the previous one. Everyone stared in shock on how the Flame Dancer managed to cover that much distance with a small burst of power and how Marina managed to encase Natsu in a box that could actually restrain him. But they were wondering more how Isabela, a girl who was only a few inches taller than Wendy managed to carry something that heavy and send Natsu tumbling backwards.

"Why you little bitch," the soldier prepared to stab her until she spun around and grabbed his tongue, yanking it out and heating it up. "Argh!"

The Flame Dancer chuckled darkly with a cocky smirk, smoking up the soldier's tongue. "That's one busy tongue you got there. Maybe I should just burn it off. That should shut you up and spare me a whole lot of shit to deal with."

The soldier swallowed fearfully as Isabela prepared to blast his face with her energy gauntlets.

"Way to go, Dumber McDumbest," Isabela sniggered as she let her gauntlet suddenly hum to life with energy building up, pointing it at his face. "I think I should just high five you right now with the Machinator Gloves. In the face that is."

The soldier stared in horror as her eyes glinted mischievously and darkly before she whirled around and kicked him down. Without any warning either, she sent blue flames from her fists inches away from Lucy to scare the other four guards surrounding her. Isabela blasted the others with a devious sneer, causing the soldiers to scatterin a panic. They all scattered as the blue flames roared with a devilish smirk on her face before giving Nina a high five. Her golden brown eyes glinted in amusement, shoving her hands in her pocket with a disgusted snort.

"And you bastards better man up and act like you actually have brains," the Flame Dancer glared darkly before looking at a restrained Natsu, smirking at the guards' terrified expressions. "Otherwise, I'll let Pinky over here burn you with his pathetic excuse of a pilot light the next time you can't keep your pants on."

Lucy gawked in astonishment until Isabela stormed towards her and threw her keys at her.

"You better man up. You're lucky I was even here to punch their lights out," Isabela cracked her knuckles before dismissing the huge gauntlets, grinning lightly. "Then again, the Machinator Gloves were just prototypes and I needed a place to test them. Next time, I'll slap your daylights out."

Nodding fearfully, the guards could only scamper away from the two angry members of the Circus. The other guards, terrified by Kevyn's lack of control and Isabela's Machinator gloves, immediately began treating to the other mages with a little more respect. Marina started letting the mirror box float as Natsu resisted the urge to throw up while the ships started moving along, boxed in by the warships. Lucy glanced at all the royal blue coloured flags and noticed all the soldiers in almost the same uniform as that of the Flame Dancer without the fingerless long gloves with metal bracelets and belts. The only ones who looked extremely different were the Puppet Master in her red oriental dress and the Illusionist who looked like a gypsy in violet.

"Hey," – Lucy suddenly looked up to find Marina smiling at her while holding a bowl of hot soup. "You want something to eat?"

Lucy blinked several times for a moment before warily taking it from the blonde girl. "Um, thank you. It's very nice of you."

Marina smiled kindly, sitting next to her. "Oh right. My name's Marina Kristallnacht – Magnus' Illusionist! Pleased to meet you!"

The blonde Celestial Mage giggled softly, drinking the bowl of soup. "I'm Lucy. Lucy Heartfilia... I'm a Celestial Spirit Wizard from Fairy Tail."

Marina gawked in astonishment, leaning in with an expectant grin. "Ooooh, that's a guild right? So, what's it like there? What do you guys do in Fiore?"

"Well, we do jobs and stuff since we're a guild," Lucy looked at the blonde girl, blinking suddenly in realization. "Wait, how old are you?"

Marina cocked her head to the side innocently, realizing that she was wondering how someone like her could join the army. "Eh? Oh, I'm 17 years old. I was just recommended recently."

"Recommended? You have to be recommended to join the army," Lucy gaped in astonishment, looking at the other soldiers.

Marina shook her head with a huge grin, hugging her knees. "Not just the army, the Circus in itself. Isabela was recruited two months ago and Kevyn's been in the Circus for God knows how long."

The blonde Celestial Wizard's eyes widened; Lucy couldn't believe that someone her age was a part of the Circus! "W-wait, you mean the Circus of Fear?"

"Yep, that's right," Marina proudly grinned as she looked above the ship, brightening up all of a sudden. "Yay, we're here!"

"Urgh!"

Marina and Lucy suddenly looked up when they found all Dragonslayers crumpled on the ground, somewhat green and ready to throw-up.

"Wow, that's a lot of Dragon Slayers," Marina blinked several times in disbelief, shaking her head lightly. "Well then again, it is pretty common on our island..."

Lucy's eyes widened, admonished. "You guys have Dragonslayers too!?"

"Yep, you got that right. Many of the wizards staying in Magnus are wielders of Lost Magic. Some say they left Fiore because they hated the system and some say they were born there in Magnus. I was born in Magnus and also Isabela," Marina smiled enthusiastically, looking over the borders of the ship. "I'm sure you guys are gonna love it in Magnus! Don't worry too much about Ringmaster. He's really scared of Kevyn and Nina."

Lucy blinked several times. "Nina?"

"Oh, that's Isabela's nickname," Marina pointed at the girl in the red dress who was commanding her droids to start repairing the ship, folding her legs together. "Kevyn's a nickname too actually. But she doesn't like using her real name."

Lucy remembered the Flame Dancer and the Puppet Master as the ship suddenly came to a stop and the fog slowly began to diffuse into clearer sights. Everybody dropped their jaws at the sight of the city as the ships drew in closer.

"Ladies and gentlemen, presenting to you," the Ringmaster bowed and gestured his cane to the island. "The Eternal Paradise - the city of Magnus!"

All the wizards stared in awe as they found themselves greeted by the ancient empire of Magnus. The city was bustling with people and steam slowly wafted into the air as the machines started clicking their gears along, pumping out fresh water and letting it circulate through the several levels of the city. Horses pulled carriages and hover cars started picking up people before flying around to bring them to their destinations.

"Holy shit," was all Gray could say when he saw the buildings and the many machines flying above him.

While the Dragonslayers were lying on the ground, Wendy suddenly stopped healing as the wind gently blew against her face. "Wow..."

The leaves glimmered bright green with dew and birds flew right above before perching on the branches. A town fountain linked the whole land with fresh water and crops and other fresh foods grew near the meadow side. However, her eyes widened at the huge Lacrima-based structure in the middle. It had five levels with each level pouring out water and the stairs leading up to the main building. Lucy looked at the base and found something like a multi-purpose hall and other set-ups, wondering what the huge tower was for.

"That's the Royal Observatory and the defence mechanism for the city," Marina rebuked her thoughts as the ramp dropped down and the boat had secured to the port, clapping her hands to gain everyone's attention with a jovial smile. "Okay, everybody time to go!"

The droids led the Dragon Slayers along with some of the other wizards while making sure they handled them gently based on Isabela's orders. Isabela began counting and looking all over the place as the mirror box holding Natsu floated next to Marina, prompting the black haired girl to chuckle. Isabela glanced at all their symbols before walking towards Kevyn who had begun fixing up the ship and making sure everything was intact. She glanced at the burned areas of the ship as the other droids began fixing it up and carrying wood, steel and all sorts of other materials.

"Looks like we're gonna have a huge party tonight, huh," Isabella leaned on one of the wooden posts, grinning in delight. "Time to dress up again."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**That's Chapter 2! I hope things are exciting enough for you guys! Please review!**


	3. Lifting the Blinds

**Me: Wow, I'm amazed by the reviews! 4 reviews for chapter 2! Waaah, I'm so happy! Thank you so much for the support! Also, I kind of revised Chapter 2 so you might want to go through it again. I know it's the first time I've written in the third person here in the Fairy Tail archives but I hope I can develop all the characters evenly. Thank you very much for pointing out whatever mistakes I may have in the chapters! I appreciated it very much. I don't own Fairy Tail, I only own the OCs, the concept of the City of Magnus and the plotline of ****THIS**** fanfiction!**

"_They advertise your life_

_Through a blanket of lies"_

_-Story of the Year, "Wake up the Voiceless" in the "In the Wake Of Determination" Album _

**Chapter 3 – Lifting the Blinds**

As soon as the ship docked, the Ringmaster had left Marina and the other two girls to deal with the mages of Fiore. Nina immediately pulled out her tool box and rolled up her sleeves, pulling out a welding torch. After awhile, Nina passed the metal sheet to one of her droids who tossed it to Kevyn as the Flame Dancer swooped in from the air. Using the blue flames to create rocket boots, Kevyn flew down to the lower part of the ship and began welding the metal sheets over the gash. The other droids carried huge cannons and crates as Nina spread out a whole blueprint on the ground, glancing at all her constructer droids.

"Hey Noisy Boy, go get those cannons from the basement and bring 'em here! Atom, bring down the mast and carry more wood to construct a new one," Nina glanced at her two human-like droids jog off to get her more parts, only to find a gold robot brushing its red headgear. "Hey Midas, what did I tell you about fixing your red feathers!? I told you to leave it alone and lemme fix it, nigga! Go get me some lacrimas for the cannons, betch!"

Without a complaint, the golden gladiator-looking robot shrugged nonchalantly before stomping away and bringing in more crystals from the harbour.

While Nina proceeded to fix the ship, Marina glanced around to make sure the mages had been tended to. She frowned slightly at the list of orders that the Ringmaster left her on paper. Scanning it for a few moments, she shrugged nonchalantly before crumpling it up and throwing it over her shoulder.

"Alright, rule number one: treat them respectfully," Marina wagged her finger, motherly chiding the soldiers. "I don't want any rough and tumble brawls while we're going around, got it?"

The soldiers glanced at one another for a moment in silence, staring at the blonde stupidly. Who was she to order them around?

Nina however strode up right next to her with a cynical smirk on her face, summoning the Machinator Gloves and letting it hum to life. "Don't worry, it's fatal."

Without any hesitation and seeing her cynical grin, the soldiers felt shivers run down their spines as they immediately began scrambling around. None of the handcuffs could fit Orga's wrists nor did they have any to bound Elfman or any of the bigger men. The soldiers immediately called up for three roller-type droids to roll up next to them in case they did decide to make a break for it. All the Exceeds were thrown into kitty carrier cages with the other Exceeds while the Dragonslayers all had mirror handcuffs that neutralized their powers. Minerva scowled deeply at one of the soldiers that proceeded to grab her, preparing to blast him. Before she could blast him, Rufus immediately caught her hand and shook his head. In an enraged silence, the Tiger Queen bit back her tongue and resorted to glaring at the soldiers as the guild masters followed behind them.

"How dare those peasants touch me," Minerva scowled darkly, clenching her hands into fists. "This is no way we Sabertooth wizards should be treated."

Rufus sighed deeply, shaking his head. "I understand your frustration, milady. But for now, let's keep our peace before they do throw us into the dungeons."

Marina glanced around and watched the soldiers handle them with a little more care as Kevyn hovered right beside her. "Are you coming?"

"Why should I be there? I might actually burn the little shit into pieces," Kevyn folded her arms with an annoyed snort, rolling her eyes with her dark gold eyes gleaming darkly.

Marina frowned deeply, shaking her head. "Well, at least do it for the king?"

Kevyn remained silent for a moment before scoffing darkly, letting out a small smirk. "Fine, I'll go with you. For all you know, Ringmaster might be sucking balls again."

Hisui and the Royal Family followed along as the soldiers cuffed them up like normal criminals, leading them through the port. The port they passed fell into a deadly silence as the people eyed them judgingly and many of the children hid behind their parents. Erza glanced back at the injured wizards as some had to be helped along by the others. Wendy helped along Romeo as he hobbled along after his leg took a severe beating from fighting the dragon. Macao and Wakaba were busy fantasizing about the two kids ending up together and Elfman had Evergreen to help him along. Gajeel gave Levy a piggy-back ride and Natsu stood near Lucy, glancing at her from time to time. The red head smiled bitterly, shaking her head. If only she had the power to combat the Future Rogue but even all together, fighting ten thousand dragons seemed to be a dream.

"It's not your fault, Erza."

The red head suddenly swivelled her head towards Jellal who had been walking beside her, causing her to hang her head shamefacedly. "But Jellal, I couldn't even..."

"We didn't expect the Future Rogue to be able to wrench open the gates," Jellal let out a hollow chuckle, shaking his head and looking at his cuff links. "Well, at least we found some refuge for now. I think the Dragonslayers would prefer a dungeon over a ship any day. Although, I'm gonna tell you now – even a magic council's meeting has more cheer."

Erza laughed softly at his optimism as she continued walking on. She remembered the battles clearly and all the blood that had been spilled, causing her body to shudder fearfully. The destruction of Crocus and the dragons roaring in the sky flashed vividly in her mind as she shook it away. All the loud battle cries and the explosions echoed in her ears before being drowned out by the draconic roars. She trudged along absentmindedly until everyone suddenly stopped.

"Alright, everyone – we're here," Marina jovially smiled, clapping her hands to get everyone's attention. "Okay, don't be afraid. I know the castle looks huge but don't worry about it. It's a lot cosier than it looks!"

Rogue could only stare at the blonde leading them towards the crystal citadel; how could she be so jovial? Then again, she wasn't the one with mirror handcuffs although at least she didn't throw him onto anything moving. He shuddered at the thought of being forced to dock on a ship. If he had better odds, he would have chosen to fight against the dragons but without having ten thousand dragons out to tear him to shreds. He shook his head darkly; never again. The Shadow Dragonslayer took a look at the other soldiers as they spoke to one another, shooting them a few withering glances from time to time. Rogue frowned lightly until he found a kitty carrier by his side.

"Frosch," Rogue lowered his voice to a soft whisper, praying that the guard didn't hear him. "Are you okay?"

"Rogue-_kun_, this is Lector. Frosch is in the other container."

The Shadow Dragonslayer looked over and saw pink paws sticking out, knowing it was Frosch as he saw green fur slightly stick out. A relieved sigh passed his lips as he found himself standing next to the tall Thunder Dragonslayer who also had mirror cuffs. Although the blonde stayed silent, Rogue could see the little yellow sparks igniting at his fingers only to have them die out. Rogue tried turning himself into a shadow to not much avail as the guards shoved him forward.

"Keep moving, Emo Boy," the guard jabbed his spear against Rogue's back with a sneer. "You're lucky you get to even have an audience with the king."

Rogue glared for a moment until he found Sting tapping his leg and gesturing him to follow him. Sting's brain chose a really good time to work, Rogue mused lightly to himself as they entered. The mages watched the soldiers watch them intently while some had their weapons. The cuffs suddenly hummed to life as magic engraved runes appeared on the handcuffs, glowing dimly. Gray glanced back as the door shut behind him, watching the other soldiers move towards the sides. Minerva narrowed her eyes venomously as she continued walking forward without much of a choice. Marina continued to walk in front before bowing kindly to the king.

"I'm sorry we're late. There were a few," Marina bowed politely before throwing an annoyed glance at the Ringmaster, smiling kindly at the king. "Roadblocks. Nina and Kevyn should be here soon."

Ringmaster glared at the blonde before moving towards the king, leaning close to him. "A girl of her rank should not be accepted here in your presence, milord."

The king stared emotionlessly at the people standing before him, weakly raising his head. "Why should I welcome you...? Gypsy girl...?"

Marina blinked several times, trying to make sure she heard right. "Excuse me?"

The Ringmaster nodded reassuringly to the king, smiling in a sickeningly sweet way. "A very good question, milord."

"Something's a little off here or is it just me," Gray glanced at Fairy Tail's first guild master, looking at the king sitting on the throne. "Is he really that old?"

Mavis narrowed her eyes darkly. "You're right but for now, let's watch things unfold."

"You are late, girl! I commanded you to bring them here as fast as possible! You have wasted daylight," the Ringmaster smirked triumphantly with a haughty scoff, folding his arms.

Minerva scowled deeply, smirking haughtily. "I think we would have better lighting if the king did not have some piece of trash dictating his speech."

The Ringmaster glared at Sabertooth's Queen, stepping forward with his walking cane jabbed against her chest. "BE SILENT, you insolent wretch!"

"Tch, this is no king I see before me. I am a King and," Minerva hissed glacially as she stepped forward, revealing her hands completely unbound and her magic working perfectly. "We kings do not let some clown with a walking stick control our speech!"

Horrified, the Ringmaster stepped back as he watched Minerva advance towards him. "Her cuffs – a SPACE WIZARD! I TOLD YOU TO ENCASE HER, YOU INSOLENT WRETCHES! INCAPACITATE HER!"

The guards rushed in towards Minerva as Rufus moved towards her defence and kicked them down. Jiemma, despite having four soldiers and three droids surrounding him, grabbed the soldiers and swung them around like a bat. He grabbed the droids by their necks before crushing them, tossing them to Gold Mine who crushed them using the chains of his handcuffs. Natsu headbutt one before kicking another one down while Gray went for a double-fisted punch. Sting swung both his arms to knock them on the ground while Rogue used his cloak to distract them before knocking them down with a kick. One soldier tried to knock him down from behind until a mirror slammed into the soldier's face, revealing Marina deflecting the other soldiers. She snapped her fingers, easily removing the mirror cuffs with a small smile.

"Go get 'em," Marina nodded kindly as she trapped another soldier in a box holding one of the kitty carriers, letting out Frosch and some of the other Exceeds.

Rogue smiled as his hands covered themselves in shadows until he looked around, coming up with an idea. "Wait a minute..."

He immediately began inhaling the darkness, devouring it in huge amounts. The room suddenly brightened up as the king howled in agony, shielding himself desperately from the light. Marina's eyes widened in realization before putting up mirrors to reflect the light straight at the king as the Ringmaster blasted magenta coloured blasts towards her. Before it could touch her, Rogue grabbed her out of the way while Levy sent a storm of fireballs. Blue Pegasus' Trimen unleashed a barrage of attacks as Hibiki began downloading all sorts of spells into their brains.

"He was never this photo-sensitive before," Marina gawked in shock as she looked at the black drapes, glancing back at Rogue. "How did you...?"

Rogue chuckled lightly, coating his hands with shadows. "I'm the Shadow Dragonslayer, Rogue Cheney. You are...?"

"Marina Kristallnacht," the blonde mirror master raised another mirror to deflect another soldier's beam spear's attack, beaming brightly. "Nice to meet you!"

Sting on the other hand had already begun deflecting attacks, vaulting over one of the guards and kicking him down. As one guard came up from behind, Sting prepared to punch his lights out until the solder's hair stood on all ends with Kevyn smirking at him. The blonde Dragonslayer gaped slightly as Kevyn suddenly unfurled the belts on her arms, zooming past him and striking down the soldiers.

"Hn, know this you little fuckers: let your scars and burns be proof and spread the word," Kevyn unleashed a huge blue flame that forced many of the soldiers to retreat, zooming past them.

Sting sniggered lightly as he blasted a few away, powering up for the Holy Nova. "Heh, not bad! I could take many more in a single blow!"

"Hn, don't think you're such hot shit. If it were the old me," Kevyn sniggered darkly as she spun around with her belts laced with electricity, electrocuting the other guards. "My flames would have reduced this hall into ashes."

Blue flames roared as many of the guards tried to suppress the fight. However, the white lights and blue flames screeched and pushed them back and sent them all retreating. As they all ran away, Kevyn smirked devilishly and didn't notice Sting coming up from behind. Feeling a sudden presence, Kevyn immediately spun around and gave him a good roundhouse kick to the jaw and sent him sprawling on the ground by accident.

"Shit, not this cocky little punk ass again," Kevyn massaged her temple tiredly before grabbing him and burning a pathway through.

Minerva had slipped in her dimension magic to slice off the chains and cuffs, allowing them to fight on even terms. Makarov had instantly increased his size before whacking the soldiers away. Natsu however completely ignored that and went simply for a full-out fist brawl. Gray kicked one down before going for a reverse punch to one of the soldiers in the stomach. As more soldiers rushed in, Erza immediately pulled out her Heaven's Wheel armour and caused them to halt in their tracks.

"Jellal, get closer to the king," Erza cracked one of the spears in pieces as she threw more swords and pinned the soldiers on the wall, completely unharmed. "Can you break the spell?"

Jellal however found himself occupied by more soldiers as they stood back to back, chuckling lightly. "If I can get close enough, I should be able to but Ultear's better with this stuff. Ultear, he's under mind-control! Get him out of it!"

Ultear used her Ice Magic without much choice in the matter, nodding at Jellal and moving closer to the king. Despite being a time wizard, the violet haired woman figured that if she did use her magic – the whole building might collapse on them. However, more soldiers rushed in with their spears pointed towards her as she fired more time orbs to age the spears into nothing but broken splinters and rusted steel. Wendy and Romeo stood back to back as they cleared another pathway until a huge magic wave surged through the area and knocked everyone down.

"ENOUGH," Jiemma slammed his foot on the ground as the soldiers fell back, glancing at the Sabertooth wizards. "Take down the Ringmaster!"

The Sabertooth Wizards immediately sprang into action and Laxus zapped past the soldiers, easily knocking them down until more lasers rained in. From the window, he saw the same girl in a red dress grinning maniacally with a full on body armour. With a glowing orb in the middle of her chest and an iron mask covering her face, she dropped down and began using rocket boosters from her feet to manoeuvre and blast away the soldier's weapons. She landed right next to Laxus as blasts both left their hands and knocked down the other soldiers, smirking in delight as the armour's shoulders popped open and revealed mini missiles shooting at the soldiers. As one appeared behind her, she bent back for a bridge as Laxus zapped the soldier behind her while she blasted a soldier's foot before he could get close to Laxus.

"Well, well, look who it is. It's Little Black Riding Hood," Laxus chuckled lightly and zapped another soldier, grabbing a soldier by the face as the girl kicked it away. "What the hell were you doing?"

Nina smirked lazily as she blasted another soldier down with her Machinator Gloves, knocking out another soldier. "Heh, I'd ask you the same, Buzz Light-year. You weren't exactly doing a good job until I showed up."

Laxus bristled at the nickname "Buzz Light-year", snorting in annoyance and kicking down a soldier that had recently gotten up again. "The name's Laxus Dreyar."

"And I'm Princess Elena Magnus," Nina waved her hand dismissively, chuckling lightly. "No, I'm kidding. The name's Isabela Carol. Nina – if your brain's too shocked to handle it."

Laxus rolled his eyes as they suddenly faced each other with their blasts zooming past each other's shoulders, knocking down the soldiers behind each other. He couldn't believe a girl who barely reached his chin and stood by his shoulder managed to have that kind of accuracy. She smirked lazily before transforming back into her usual dressy self before dropping down her hood and revealing her short black hair. What he couldn't tear his eyes off however was her bright violet eyes that sparkled with mischief as she flicked his nose teasingly.

"I know I'm fabulous but it's really rude to stare," Nina flipped her short black hair, folding her arms with a haughty smirk.

_Damn, this guy's weird..._

Nina glanced up at the muscular blonde man with the lightning bolt scar over his eye. She had never seen anyone this much taller than she was, pouting in annoyance. The blonde man had arms as big as both her legs put together and remembering how fast he zapped past them, how the hell did he manage to do that? The black haired girl started doing the math mentally but even then someone who could move as fast as lightning would've been weighed down by his own body mass. Looking at all the soldiers that lay sprawled out, she could only wonder where Kevyn had gone off to. She had told her to meet her back here but the brunette hadn't shown up yet. Normally, Kevyn would have been earlier than she was but now she found herself working with "Buzz Lightyear" much to her great annoyance.

"Tch, don't tell me she went off to get food again," Nina scratched her head, shaking it in annoyance. "She really has a one-track mind sometimes."

Before she could say anything, more soldiers poured in as they all had their eyes gleaming with some weird colour. Nina's eyes widened as she cursed angrily at her rotten luck. How did so many soldiers suddenly

"Milord!"

Everyone looked towards the door as Ultear and Wendy had gotten close to the king. Everyone in the hall remained silent, waiting for any possible reinforcements. The light continued to burn through the darkness with the king groaning in pain from the glaring light. The other soldiers lay littered behind them as a woman suddenly emerged from one of the corridors and ran towards him.

"Don't worry; Ultear knows what she's doing," Jellal smiled reassuringly at the woman as she stared in admonishment.

The Ringmaster tried to scamper away only to have Gajeel pick him up by his shirt, grinning maniacally. "Gihihihi, I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Ultear inhaled deeply, closing her eyes and probing deep into his mind. "I'm sorry, this may hurt a little."

She stood there for a moment until the king started cackling in malice and amusement. Her eyes opened as she found him grinning madly at her without even showing any slight disturbance from her probing. She tried to probe in deeper, feeling her mind strain as she heard his maniacal laugh become even louder. The Time Wizard stared aghast, shaking her head. How was that possible?

"You have no power here, Ultear Milkovic," the king demonically grinned with his bloodshot eyes. "The little Sky Dragonslayer with you shouldn't even bother saving this old fool!"

As to how he knew her name and how he knew Wendy's magic straight off the bat, Ultear could only gawk in astonishment. How did that man know her name and Wendy's power? She looked around for any magic orbs or devices but saw nothing but black curtains and worn out drapes. The purple haired woman tried to probe deeper only to be shoved back by a huge blast as the Ringmaster grinned in delight. Jellal and Erza caught her as the king grinned maniacally despite looking shrivelled and old. They looked around for any other source until Gajeel shook the Ringmaster violently, glaring darkly with his dark red eyes.

"Alright, the show's over! Let the old man go," Gajeel glared deeply with his arm becoming a blade, lifting him higher in the air. "Otherwise, I'm just gonna have to cut you to little pieces until the control and spell wears off!"

"Unhand me you mindless brute," the Ringmaster suddenly sent Gajeel flying with magenta orbs flying towards him, glaring angrily at him. "How could I, the amazing Danielli, be a traitor to the king?"

The whole room remained silent as Ultear looked at the severely aged king. She bit her lower lip anxiously, glancing at Wendy and gesturing her to follow her. The little bluenette shivered a little but still steeled herself to step forward. The king sat down on his throne, completely withered as the soldiers were unable to do anything. Minerva encased them in a sphere while Jura and Lyon had the other soldiers barred off by an earthen wall and a sleeping ice dragon. As the two approached the king, the old man stared darkly at them with his bloodshot red eyes. Mavis kept her orb glowing with a bright rainbow white light. The Sky Dragonslayer stood completely terrified of his expression as Ultear moved close with her hand placed in front of him.

"Perhaps, it takes more than just probing to get you out of it," Ultear narrowed her eyes as she started focusing her magic on him.

The king hissed darkly, feeling the sudden probing from Ultear's magic. "One more move and this old man dies!"

Mavis neared towards the king with her own magic glowing brightly that sent the old king slamming against his throne, smiling serenely. "Leave now and do not make me use it."

The Ringmaster, seeing the bright light and the power both wizards carried, lunged towards them in raging fury. "No, milord!"

Seeing the skinny man lunge for the king, Marina immediately summoned a deflecting mirror right in front of the king while Rogue sent his shadow to trip the Ringmaster. As the skinny man fell to the ground, Nina immediately clapped her hands together and slammed the ground with a bright red and gold enchantment circle glowing beneath her.

"Mech Summon: Zeus," Nina grinned darkly before pointing at the Ringmaster, commanding her huge black robot with glowing green eyes. "Get that, irrelevant nigga!"

The moment the Ringmaster regained his bearings, Zeus stomped towards him and picked him off the ground while Laxus had shocked the Ringmaster with a lightning bolt. Nina narrowed her eyes at the Ringmaster as Mavis continued to probe deeper into the king's mind. She couldn't believe someone who was shorter than her had enough power to scare away dark spirits. Normally, dark spirits would be cocky about remaining in their hosts' body.

She glanced at Laxus, raising an eyebrow at the blonde. "You sure this is gonna work?"

Laxus nodded solemnly, watching Mavis continue to pressure the king. "She was the first guild master of Fairy Tail and one of the best dealing with Dark Wizards. I'm very sure she can do it."

"I am certain you cannot defeat me and you cannot kill him," Mavis narrowed her eyes into a dark stare, stepping closer. "Begone!"

The king gnashed his teeth angrily, glaring demonically at Mavis. While Mavis continued to keep the king pinned down, Ultear probed deeper and deeper until her eyes widened with horror. She found a malicious face staring at her with a pair of dark eyes. The Time Mage, despite her fear, continued to press on as she delved deeper into his mind. Upon reaching the end, her eyes widened when she found the very man who had thrown them out of Fiore sneering at her and reaching for the king's mind.

"Ryos," Ultear staggered back fearfully as the king lunged at Mavis and she with a loud roar, realizing how horrifying the grip was on his mind. "Ah!"

Without a sweat, Mavis flicked the king back to his chair and slammed him against the backrest. The woman stared in horror as Jellal finally let her go, watching the king slump down to the ground as the woman caught him. Makarov stared in shock as Mavis backed up with a relieved smile on her face. Ultear stepped aside and let Wendy begin her healing as her hands began to glow with a light blue light. The woman holding the king stared in amazement as the king slowly became his young self again. Slowly, he raised his head and found himself surrounded by his soldiers and darkened drapes.

"Dark my dreams have been as of late," the king glanced melancholically as he found the first guild master of Fairy Tail standing before him with many other guilds. "Mavis?"

"It's been awhile, Rothion," the blonde guild master smiled kindly, bowing humbly.

Rothion blinked several times as he looked at his hand becoming much younger. "Good God, what have I been doing? How long was I out?"

"Give or take three weeks on and off. You were listening to a fucked up idiot is what," – the king looked up and found Kevyn and Nina standing next to a huge robot holding onto the Ringmaster, with Kevyn suddenly zapping him awake. "He really knew how to play his pieces. But after we're done with him – fuck everything, let's just burn the bastard."

The king chuckled lightly, shaking his head. "I am glad you haven't changed even if your words are cringe-worthy."

"Heh, what can I say old man? Old habits die hard," Kevyn smirked with her usual cocky expression, folding her arms.

Rothion glanced at Nina and chuckled lightly, noticing the huge robot standing next to her. "I believe that's Zeus?"

"You got that right," Nina pat the black robot's armour, grinning proudly. "This thing's got enough nitrous piston power to kick ass!"

Rothion chuckled lightly as he looked at his hands, shaking his head weakly. "Everything feels so strange, including this hallway. Since when did I order black curtains?""

Mavis glanced at the soldiers, nodding at them. "I think it would be better if we shed a little light on the situation."

The soldiers immediately scrambled for the black curtains as they yanked them off. The hallway lit up with bright lights as the remaining soldiers bowed down humbly in front of their king. He managed to stand straight as he looked around at the many silver armours decorating the hallway with the insignia of Magnus right behind his throne. He found himself standing next to the queen as brushed his thumb under her chin. He couldn't believe the tears that were pouring freely out of her eyes while taking a good look around at his people.

"Rowena," Rothion smiled lightly, taking a good look into her eyes. "Sorry for worrying you too much..."

Rowena smiled as she pulled out something from behind, revealing a grimoire. "I'm just glad you're better. Although, I believe this belongs to you?"

Seeing the grimoire lying in her hands, Rothion gently traced and fingered the cover carefully. How could a book gain so much dirt in a single sitting? A bitter smile crossed his lips as he slowly took the book as he opened it, snapping his fingers to call his staff. The Ringmaster's eyes widened in horror as his walking cane flew away from his hand and landed in King Rothion's hand. The king smiled lightly at the feeling of magic and the recognition of his staff before directing a glare at the skinny man on the ground.

"Throw him out," Rowena glared at the man being held down by Zeus. "Make sure it hurts."

"He-he, with pleasure, ma'am," Nina lazily smirked before snapping her fingers, casually folding her arms and looking at her nails. "Zeus, Full Hurl Thunderbolt for the finisher."

"Wait."

Everyone turned to Rothion as the king stepped down from the throne area, letting his clothes become that of a royal ringmaster. Instead of the pinstripe pants, he dressed himself in an all black English butler suit with the usual top hat and bright red rose. Danielli's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as Nina, Kevyn and Marina all walked towards the king and standing by his side. The wizards found themselves in astonishment of the king who had easily thrown away his kingly robes to fight amongst his soldiers. He glanced at the three girls before letting snapping his fingers. Everyone stared in amazement as eight more people showed up, revealing a whole team standing behind him.

"A king never lets anyone else throw out his trash," Rothion glared darklyy as the magenta coloured circles appeared, creating huge psychic waves. "Sorry Danielli, end of the line. You've played the jester long enough."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**I'm sorry this took so long. I wasn't sure how to introduce the king and the true Circus of Fear. Hehe, you all thought it was that Danielli guy huh? Anyway, please don't forget to review! More reviews = faster update!**


	4. Magnus

**Me: Hi guys! Sorry for the late update! My classes just started and my schedule just screwed up in so many ways so I had to fix it. Also, I was a heartbroken by the loss of my first **_**bishounen**_** in Fairy Tail. (Damn it, Hiro Mashima – you just had to kill Gray now did you? Now you're gonna have to face the wrath of all the Gruvia fans in the world!) But thankfully, he brought him back! Anyhow, I hope the fanfiction is to your liking. Send me reviews with your thoughts! Don't hold back and also the grammar if you feel there are problems. So, just for formalities: I don't own Fairy Tail! I only own the concept of this fanfiction and the OCs!**

"_There's a world outside every darkened door_

_Where blues won't haunt you anymore where the brave are free and lovers soar_

_Come ride with me to the distant shore."_

_RASCAL FLATTS – "LIFE IS A HIGHWAY" from the Album "Me and My Gang"_

**Chapter 4 –Magnus**

A huge explosion sounded off as all the people stared at the commotion happening at the castle. The soldiers and villagers started gathering to the front of the ancient crystal citadel as another explosion sounded off. Smoke rose into the air as a skinny figure tumbled and rolled down the stairs. Their eyes widened as they found a newly empowered Rothion walking down, being followed by the rest of the Circus of Fear.

"Why? I have done nothing but have been faithful to you, Milord," Danielli tried his best to scramble away, wincing at the pain after tumbling down the stairs. "It's those lying conniving girls! Ever since you have accepted them, they have done nothing but destroy your sense of judgement!"

Rothion narrowed his eyes darkly, making his hands glow brightly. "You had me on a choke chain and crawling on all fours like a beast!"

"Send me not from your sight," Danielli stared in horror, crawling back fearfully.

Rothion raised his arm in the air as a huge magenta aura shaped into an energy blade, preparing to kill him. "I'd prefer to do so!"

As Danielli cowered from the blade, another member of the circus dashed forward as the hood fell down and revealed a short shaggy red haired woman, holding his arm tightly.

"No milord," – Rothion stared in astonishment as the woman shook her head. "Let him go!"

"We've lost too much time and blood on his account," she bit her lower lip anxiously while looking at the sword floating in the air.

Rothion, breathing heavily, reluctantly relented with the sword disappearing as he cast a withering glance at the fallen skinny man. Although he had known the man to be a part of the Circus, never did he realize that one of the clowns would usurp his place as the Ringmaster. The woman then moved closer to Danielli to help him stand up, only to have him spit in her hand. She backed away in disgust as Danielli immediately scrambled up to his feet and darted towards the crowds.

"Get out of my way," Danielli hissed venomously as he shoved people past him, running towards the docks.

Nina immediately clapped her hands together before slamming the ground, summoning two more robots standing next to her. "Midas, Noisy Boy – go get that irrelevant nigga...!"

"Forget it, Isabela. Your wasting time if you try," the red haired woman turned around as her eyes suddenly widened and saw Minerva standing there also with her jaw agape. "M-Minerva...?"

The violet haired woman gritted her teeth, narrowing her eyes. "Mother..."

"HAIL, KING ROTHION!"

As Danielli fled the area, all the townspeople dropped down to their knees as the whole sky seemingly brightened up again. Cheers and applauses echoed from the crowd as Rothion stepped down from the stairs and dismissed his magic staff. The soldiers raised their spears to form an arch as the Circus of Fear soon abandoned their hoods and revealed their true forms, taking their places next to the king. Trumpets sounded off as blue fireworks shot straight out into the air, exploding into beautiful blue flowers in the sky.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Jiemma himself couldn't believe that his wife now stood in front of him as one of the members of the Circus of Fear.

Upon returning to the throne room to discuss things with Mavis, the other guild masters waited in the hall to hear what Rothion had to say. All members of the Circus of Fear joined Rothion, including Rowena and his wife. The last time he had seen her, it was ten years after Minerva had been born and that he had taken the rank as Guild Master from the former leader. A smirk curved up his lips and realized how she barely aged let alone looked any different from the last time he saw her. Minerva had become her spitting image save the colour of hair which she had inherited from him and also her desire for power. His wife had always complained how he had a "one-track" mentality and after a huge argument – she left. She had become weak, Jiemma scowled at the thought of it. What had attracted him to her in the first place?

Minerva on the other hand found herself torn from gelding her mother from where she stood or physically beating her until she got her answers.

The War God magician always found it easy to get what she wanted. All she had to do was a little display and a little bit of polite threatening and things always went her way. Now, her mother stood in front of her. She winced at the feeling in her stomach like a rock had sunken into it. Silently berating herself, Minerva tried to force herself to move but her body refused to comply. She gritted her teeth in frustration as her hands balled up into fists. When did her mother even arrive at Magnus?

_Dear Lord, what is wrong with my daughter?_

Although her mother believed she didn't hear it, Minerva heard it as clear as day. She remembered the days how her mother would spoil her with toys and dolls, trying to curb her so-called "unhealthy desire for power" and her horrid habit of bullying. True, she didn't have a huge crowd following her but it was all the better. Simple, sleek and powerful – those words made her lips curve up into a malicious and cruel smirk. The only one she had close to her was Rufus and Orga; Rufus more since he had become a wizard the same time she had. The two were the same age and it was her mother's attempt to get her to socialize. Minerva scoffed in annoyance; her mother's attempts were pathetic although Rufus practically had grown on her.

"Mavis, I do hope you're here more on a vacation trip rather than some crazy harebrained scheme," Rothion clasped his hands together as the other members of the Circus stood beside him, staring intently at the small girl. "Although, something tells me you couldn't have possibly gotten everyone to come here unless we have some calamity happening in the mainland."

Mavis closed her eyes, breathing out deeply. "Rothion, I am not asking for anything but refuge for the younger wizards. The whole mainland had been taken over by dragons…"

"I am quite certain I know what you're asking me to do," the blonde king bit his lower lip darkly, shaking his head. "I cannot risk a full-out war with my people in danger. This is a war that is not theirs but yours. Secondly, after Fiore has used us as a dumping island for criminals – I believe we have the right of second thought."

Hisui stood up immediately, appalled by his words. "We… We never used this island as a dumping ground!"

"How dare you insinuate such a thing," the king of Fiore slammed his fist against the table, glaring angrily. "We've always kept out of your hair!"

"How sure are you, young lady, good sir?"

Her eyes widened when the red haired woman narrowed her eyes, folding her arms. "Forgive me for being so blunt but I do remember being thrown out of Sabertooth and being condemned by the Magic Council. The court that you all had there then decided I'd be thrown here. I could've stayed with my daughter but no, your so-called "justice" insisted that I'd be exiled."

Rothion waved his hand up, silencing the woman. "It's alright, Calypso. I do understand your rage towards Sabertooth's guild master and the Fiore government running the magic world but for now, let us try to be more cordial about it."

Calypso averted her eyes away, hanging her head shamefacedly. "Forgive me, milord."

The blonde haired king shook his head, sadly smiling at his old friend. "However, I can extend my help as a refuge site. Until you all figure a way how to destroy those dragons, feel free to stay as long as you keep out of trouble. I've heard rumours of Fairy Tail of being quite... well, destructive."

Mavis smiled serenely with a sheepish smile, bowing humbly in front of Rothion. "Well, the rumours are not wrong. But I assure you, they have someone to keep them in line," – glancing lightly at Makarov and Erza. "Thank you also. We'll do our best to keep silent."

Rothion smiled lightly before rising from his throne, glancing towards the other members of the Circus of Fear. "Please do escort them to their rooms. Also, Mavis – care to walk with me? We have not spoken in a long time. I'd also like to meet with the other guild masters as well."

However, the guild masters suddenly found themselves hit by a magic shockwave when Jiemma and Calypso had a strong stare down. Refusing to break eye contact, Jiemma remained firmly rooted to the ground as he stormed towards Calypso. The red haired woman chuckled lightly; she knew Jiemma like the back of her hand. Calypso ran her fingers through her short layered messy pixie cut hair as she prepared to draw her rapier when he growled right in front of her. Without a second thought, she raised her blade right towards his chest and stopped him right there and then.

"Jiemma," she glacially glared, pushing the tip of her rapier a little more against his chest.

"Calypso," Jiemma stood proudly in front of the red haired woman, letting his own power start flowing out.

The Sabertooth wizards swallowed hard as Minerva cruelly smirked at the sight of her mother being intimidated by her father. However, she shivered slightly at Calypso's bright blue eyes staring back at her father. The intensity of the energies swallowed the air and sent many of the mages shivering in fear. Minerva struggled to keep her stance as the two refused to break eye contact from one another until her father was the first to move. Jiemma swung his arm to unleash a blast as Calypso gracefully danced away before sliding past him, slashing him with her blue rapier. Jiemma staggered back but managed to fire out a huge white blast. Much to everyone's astonishment, Calypso's blade easily cut it into two pieces as Marina quickly threw out mirror barriers before it smashed into any of the antiques.

"Thank you, sweetie," Calypso smiled kindly at the blonde before becoming serious, focusing on her attack. "Queen's Guard: Shock!"

Her rapier hummed to life as a blue and white light glowed around it. With a single swing of her blade, Calypso fired a blue and white blast towards Jiemma. The blast crackled towards him as his arm rose up to deflect the blast before unleashing shockwave blades at him. She let out a hollow chuckle; since when did Jiemma become so easily provoked? Sabertooth's guild master prepared to unleash his own blast until a force field nullified the attack, revealing Minerva standing in between them. A pregnant pause wedged in between them until they heard someone groaning on one side.

"Urgh, where the hell am I," – everyone swivelled their head towards Sting who just got up. "Oh wait, it's over already?"

Rogue could only sigh at his blonde partner before looking at the other three girls, ready to move on Calypso's command. Jiemma never took things lightly and Calypso glared holes into his guild master, brandishing her rapier dangerously. He glanced at Minerva who barely budged an inch when the blast collided against her shield. Rufus and the other members moved in as Rogue gestured to Sting to step up his game. The blonde immediately jumped in to action with his other teammates only to find himself facing three girls – the same three girls who had taken down an army. Four robots appeared by Nina's side after she slammed both her palms onto the ground, Marina had her mirrors ready to deflect and Kevyn took a combat position with a goading smirk on her face.

"Now, now, now, father – we should maintain cordial relationships until they have become weak," Minerva chuckled darkly with a grim smirk, sardonically staring down at her mother. "After all, a woman's just a woman unless she has the power to fight for her stand in society no?"

Calypso narrowed her eyes at Minerva, wondering how her daughter had become increasingly sardonic and malicious. She knew her daughter had a strong sense of cunning and manipulation but sadism? She could only understand that the sadistic streak came from her former husband. Calypso continued to keep her battle stance as Minerva didn't seem to let down the barrier just yet, watching the flickering in her eyes. Minerva refused to budge and continued to keep a battle stance against her. However, there was something else that she saw in her daughter's eyes. Something flickered that it made her blood run cold.

And she didn't like that feeling one bit.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

After being escorted to one of the rooms with his guild-mates, Laxus looked around and saw the polished marble floors glistening under the sunlight. A translucent white sheet stopped most of the sunlight although gold curtains were drawn aside and bound by a cream white cord. A fireplace sat in front of a red canopy bed with the coat of arms hung right above the fireplace. A living space sat in front of the fireplace with a rack of wooden logs to set the flames ablaze. He smirked; Natsu would might as well burn down a whole forest or keep calling room service for them to light a fire. A dresser stood on one side as he tossed his trench coat aside onto one of the chairs, stretching his sore muscles.

"Tch, who knew fighting dragons could be that crazy," Laxus winced slightly as he lay flat on the bed, feeling the wounds biting out. "I should get some music in..."

The Thunder Dragonslayer generated some lightning as his earphones flew right into his hand. He chuckled lightly as he lay down on the bed, relishing the softness of the mattress. The blonde male smirked as he plugged in his earphones and closed his eyes, letting the music play.

_Hehe, never knew you missed me that bad, Sparky._

Laxus suddenly snapped open his eyes as he checked his mp3 player. How did that crazy Gearcraft wizard's voice get into his player? He saw his mp3 player, playing the song "If I Had You" by Adam Lambert. When did he download that? He couldn't even remember how that song got into his mp3 player in the first place. The blonde Dragonslayer sat up before scrolling through his playlist again and found another song. With a smirk, he opened it before falling back asleep.

_I see sparks fly whenever you smile..._

Laxus shook his head violently before snapping straight back up to check if he had downloaded country genre music. He scanned his playlist again, seeing his list of classical and metal rock music. Yet, why did he hear the Gearcraft Mage singing through his earphones? He recognized her voice before picking up his earphones, throwing it aside. With an annoyed groan, Laxus lay flat on the bed before closing his eyes again and trying to relax. Suddenly, there was a soft knocking on the door.

"Just when I was going to get some sleep," Laxus groaned darkly, sitting up. "It's open."

The door slowly opened and revealed a maid stepping in, bowing her head low. "Good afternoon, Master. Shall I prepare a hot bath for you?"

_Heh, good room service. This I could get used to_, Laxus smirked lightly, nodding his head. "Yeah, that would be nice."

The maid nodded lightly before maintaining a humble position. "Also, Lord Rothion insists that you bring your friends to the festival tonight."

"There's a festival during times like this," Laxus raised an eyebrow at the woman, folding his arms. _What the hell, we're in the middle of the war!_

The maid smiled sweetly to the huge Dragonslayer, smoothing out his trench coat. "Yes, it's more of a celebration for the king's return. Magnus' had been in the Dark Ages ever since the arrival of Mr. William Danielli. He only seemed to be a mere jester until his attacks and his manipulation had a stronger grip."

Laxus nodded slowly as he looked at the other things in the room. He could see why everyone had been edgy when they had arrived in the island. That Danielli did seem the type of man who would try to gain control of an entire empire. Magnus in itself was very impressive almost a utopia if he had to say so himself. A place where both mages and normal people could coincide without any fear of being judged wrongly; that was something Fiore had strived for only to make it a whole lot worse. Although he never had been a victim of discrimination, Fairy Tail wizards had been discriminated far and wide for being extremely destructive.

Although, he couldn't say they were wrong about that.

Laxus inhaled deeply until he picked up his earphones, remembering that there was something wrong with it. "Do you know where that black haired girl is?"

The maid swivelled her head towards him. "Excuse me?"

"The small black haired girl in some Chinese red dress and summons some crazy robots to hurl people into the ceiling," Laxus chuckled in amusement, shrugging his shoulders. "She said her name was Nina or something…"

The maid blinked several times for a moment before she smiled kindly, stepping out of the bathroom. "Oh, you mean Ms. Carol? Oh she'll be busy also for festival tonight. You should watch it tonight. It's when all the members of the Circus display their power and help others learn how to use their magic. Is there anything else you need sir?"

Laxus nodded stiffly, removing some of his bandages to change it. "No, it's alright, thanks."

As the maid stepped out, Laxus stepped into the bathroom as the scent of cinnamon filled his nose. He chuckled lightly until the image of the black haired girl suddenly flashed into his mind. He remembered how she was escorted by all those robots and how they easily listened to her command and how she had dissed her superior. A smirk curved up her lips as he folded his arms and immersed himself into the hot water. His muscles tensed for a moment before completely relaxing as the scent of cinnamon started calming him down. The Thunder Dragonslayer shook his head and inhaled deeply; why did she seemingly occupy his mind?

Well, he did need her to fix his earphones. If she could build a robot, how hard could it be to fix a pair of earphones?

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Marina smiled sweetly, gesturing to the door. "Here's your room!"

Rogue nodded lightly as Frosch perched herself on Rogue's shoulder. "Ah, thanks. You didn't have to escort me though..."

The blonde gypsy twiddled with her thumbs with an accommodating smile. "Oh don't worry – I wouldn't have Nina or Kevyn do it though. They're not very good with people."

"Yeah to be honest," Rogue scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, chuckling in amusement. "When I heard Excellion-_san_ talk for the first time, I mistook her for a man."

Sighing deeply, Marina giggled softly. "Yeah many people do mistake her for a man. Oh, I don't think I've formally introduced myself to you. I'm Marina Kristallnacht. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Cheney."

Rogue shook his head with a soft chuckle, sighing deeply. "Just call me Rogue."

Marina smiled with a cheerful nod, stepping aside to reveal the room. "Rogue it is then!"

As the Shadow Dragonslayer took a step in, Rogue found himself mesmerized by the room's simplicity and elegance all at the same time. He wondered where his other guild-mates were place though. There was only one bed, which meant he was sleeping alone. He somewhat felt a little giddy; he always had to worry about Sting's nightmares and sometimes the blonde even spoke in his sleep. As the black haired male sat on his bed, he winced from his wounds nearly tearing themselves open until he had a soft cherry blossom scent fill his nose. He immediately looked up and found Marina stepping in with a first aid kit, pulling out some bandages and stuff.

"Oh um," – Marina visibly paled when she saw the blood spreading out on his bandages. "Uh-um, would you like me to change it for you?"

Rogue blinked several times, noticing her discomfort. "You don't have to if you're homophobic."

Marina shook her head vigorously, stammering as she averted her eyes away from the blood red splotches. "N-No, it's fine!"

Rogue shrugged nonchalantly as Marina took a seat next to him, peeling off the sticky bandages. The Shadow Dragonslayer noticed how uncomfortable she was but she still insisted. The metallic scent of blood reached his nose but he decided to concentrate on the smooth movement of Marina's fingers over his wounds. She pulled out a cotton ball from her kit and began dabbing the wound gently, wincing at the cotton ball turn bright red each time. As he felt the cooling sensation from the ointment, Rogue relaxed his body a little as he looked outside the window and noticed the flowers floating by.

"This room has a nice view," Rogue smiled lightly and listened to the soft breeze passing through the windows, closing his eyes.

Marina nodded with a soft laughter, tightening the knot around one of his bandages. "Yeah, I always offer this room to people since it has a nice view of Ma'am Calypso's garden."

"Ma'am Calypso? Minerva's mother," Rogue blinked several times, raising an eyebrow. "Wow, I didn't know..."

To be honest, the Shadow Dragonslayer had imagined Minerva's mother a whole lot differently.

Seeing the way Minerva acted around people, Rogue expected her to be more cruel and cunning – perhaps, even a little more manipulative. However, the red haired woman seemed more gentle and a lot less sardonic and sadistic in comparison to Minerva. Despite her gentleness, she stood proud with a calm demeanour and knew when she had to put her foot down on things. He had never heard the dark blue haired woman mention her mother and her reaction to her in trying to shoot her daylights out really spelled out how dysfunctional the whole family was. Well, more like it was just Minerva and Jiemma but he had yet to see what Calypso could do. Must be coming from Master Jiemma I guess, Rogue mused lightly as he straightened up when Marina pat his back.

"There, all done! At least you don't look like someone who sent Zeus on you," Marina cheerfully giggled while closing up the First Aid Kit, standing up. "Oh yeah, would you like a tour around the castle? You know, just so you won't get lost."

The Shadow Dragonslayer blinked several times, wondering how someone like her could be so cheerful. Despite being a soldier, she had this huge bright smile on her face and had become extremely accommodating in comparison to her teammates. Nina always had a smart mouth and even didn't mind throwing out her former superior through the roof. On the other hand, Kevyn looked like she wanted to burn everything into cinders and had the dirty mouth to match it. Although, he did wonder why someone as violent as her even bothered saving Sting. Normally, people that violent wouldn't care. He shrugged with a soft smile, chuckling lightly.

"Sure why not?"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Sting walked around as he found himself lost in the castle halls. Lector flew next to him as they started to warily glance at the armour. The coat of arms and many other statues decorated the halls with windows that revealed the gardens. The White Dragonslayer narrowed his eyes, trying to keep things low.

"Sting-_kun_, did you see the Lady's mother? She looks so different," Lector gaped in astonishment, waving his arms frantically in the air. "She's like super cool and no make-up! And the lady is... full of make-up and scary..."

Sting grinned and chuckled lightly, shoving his hands into his pockets. "No kidding, the way she used that rapier was damn blasted awesome! Rufus may be the most flamboyant bastard alive but heck; she makes him look like he was a hippo on skates!"

Suddenly, a loud roar echoed from outside. It sounded similarly to that of a flame. Sting blinked several times as he heard a loud electric crackle as well. More flashes and lightning bolts shot out into the air. He prepared to look out the window as a huge azure flame nearly singed his face. Sting jumped back as the flame roared loudly before fading away into nothing. The blonde Dragonslayer immediately felt the adrenaline running through his veins as he grinned at his feline partner.

"Wanna check it out?"

Downstairs in the training grounds, Kevyn inhaled deeply as she took her combat position. She swung her leg over as blue flames roared and knocked down the armour standing. More targets appeared as she twisted her body and shot lightning bolts from two of her fingertips. One by one, the targets fell as she unleashed blue flames from her kicks. Arrows soon flew towards her as she performed a flaming butterfly kick and burned the arrows into ashes. Kevyn twisted and went for a graceful landing as she skidded to keep her stance before launching herself forward with blue flames from her feet propelling her forward.

A huge armoured robot suddenly appeared in front of her as she stopped her movement mid-way with a quick rush. With a quick slide, Kevyn kicked hard and sent a huge azure crackling and flaming shockwave towards the robot as it exploded. The flames burned it down as the lightning bolt cracked a hole through its armour as she took her stance once more, surveying the damage around her.

"Heh, not bad."

Kevyn spun around and threw a huge blue flame from her fist, seeing Sting suddenly throw a white blast that parried her flame. "Tch, it's you again."

"What? Miss my face already," Sting smirked as he leaned against the wall, folding his arms.

The Flame Dancer rolled her eyes with a sarcastic snort, spinning away and throwing a flame into another target. "Don't think you're such a hot shit."

Sting watched her spin around, seeing her launch another flame and practice another form. "So, you got a name?"

"It's none of your business," Kevyn scowled darkly as she launched another azure flame towards the target.

Sting raised an eyebrow, walking towards her. "What? Am I gonna call you Flame Dancer all the time or am I gonna have to call you Spitfire all the time?"

"I'll tell you my name," Kevyn stopped for a moment before turning to face him with a devious smirk. "If you kick my ass, that is."

A huge smirk appeared on his lips as he lit up his hands into white lights. He rushed towards her with his fists drawn back. The Flame Dancer leapt high into the air and unleashed another flame before contorting in mid-air to see the White Dragonslayer flying towards her in full attack.

"Hey, think fast," Sting threw his fist with a huge grin.

"You stupid fucker," Kevyn smirked cockily before slid right past him before spinning around to attack him from behind. "Who the hell do you think you are!?"

Sting felt a foot plant itself on his back as he tumbled forward, noticing another barrage of blue flames rushing towards him. Quickly getting up for a recovery, the White Dragonslayer launched himself towards her again to dodge as Kevyn steeled her stance. He threw another punch as she pushed herself back to avoid his punch before kicking up a huge flame. A roaring blue flame shot towards him as he dispelled it with a white blast. Kevyn suddenly reappeared in front of him, with blue lightning crackling around her body.

"_Fuerza del Azul Monarca _[Force of the Blue Monarch]_,_" Kevyn smirked after covering the distance and unleashing a blue flame covered kick, smirking until Sting caught it with one hand with his hand glowing white. "Wh-what the-!?"

Instead of throwing her down, Sting chuckled lightly before instantaneously redirecting her attack and shoving her down on the ground to pin her down. Kevyn fell flat on her back with both her arms pinned by him as she gave him a solid kick in the gut to throw him off. The blonde Dragonslayer staggered back and winced slightly at the blow until more blue flames howled angrily at him. Jumping out of the way, the blonde smirked as he noticed the determination and fury glint in her eyes.

"Heh, not bad – you call that an offense," Sting jumped off the tree, springing himself towards her with his hands glowing.

His fists nearly collided with her face as she brought up her arm to block it. His eyes widened when multiple belts wrapped around his arm as her two fingertips began crackling with electricity.

"Don't take me lightly, you sack of shit," Kevyn covered her whole body in electricity, preparing to channel it out.

_Shit, she's gonna fry me!_

Without any idea to escape, Sting immediately pushed her wrist out of the way with a lunge only to have the two mages tumble down onto the ground with him on top of her. The Flame Dancer let out yelp as she slammed her back against the ground, wincing. However, the brunette blushed madly when she saw Sting's teal blue eyes staring at her. She could feel his minty breath fanning her face and boy did she feel her body numb right there and then. If her arms weren't pinned and his legs weren't tangled up with hers, she would have zapped him right there and then.

"Kevyn, we need to... oh..."

When Kevyn swivelled her head towards the doorway, there stood Calypso with a huge all-knowing grin and a raised eyebrow. The Flame Dancer gawked in horror and admonishment; of all the people to see her at the most horrible situation ever imagined, did it have to be her mentor!?

Calypso blinked several times, shaking her head and disguising her snicker. "Oh, I'm sorry. It looks like I'm interrupting something..."

"N-No, it's not what you think," Kevyn immediately kicked Sting off her, glaring at him before throwing a withering glance at the woman. "It's this stupid fucker's fault! GODDAMNIT, CALYPSO!"

Calypso brushed it off, smiling lightly and chuckling at the Flame Dancer. "Alright, alright – I'll pretend I didn't see anything. But we have to get ready for the festival. It's almost night time."

Kevyn groaned with a snort, scratching the back of her neck. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, let me just get out of here before I lose more of my brain cells."

Calypso chuckled lightly as the Flame Dancer stormed past her while shaking her head and taking one last look at the fallen male, following after the storming girl. She chuckled in amusement and once Marina and Nina got the hold of that kind of information, she'd had to worry more of how much fireproofing solution she had to use on the castle. Sting, wincing at the blow the girl gave him, looked up with a smirk and shook his head. That was the second time kicked him without him knowing and boy, did it hurt.

"Kevyn huh," Sting pondered deeply as a cocky grin appeared on his lips. "Weird name for a girl..."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Night fell with fireworks sparkling in the air with loud music playing. All the guilds saw many people fill up the streets with many floats, machines and some with events. Natsu had immediately headed towards the food stands, dragging Lucy along. Juvia stared in amazement as several water wizards made a huge water show along with several ice wizards. Gray couldn't believe the many sculptures that popped out of nowhere from the other ice wizards and even Lyon who had been trying to gain Juvia's attention could only gape at the many snow and ice sculptures surrounding the area. Laxus on the other hand sat amongst the Raijinshuu as they found themselves sitting near the citadel. However, many of the people gathered right in front of the citadel where there were seats and flashing lights.

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls," the spotlight shone on Rothion as he pulled out a microphone from his staff, gesturing to the crowd. "Thank you for all coming tonight! I know things must've been very hard but now I have returned!"

The crowds went wild as many of the guild members started looking around. Erza took a seat next to the guild master and Jellal while Gray and the other members scattered themselves around to get a better view. Many of the citizens of Magnus cheered loudly. Sabertooth couldn't believe all the hype the people would give just for a magic demonstration. Minerva glared darkly as she wondered where her mother went as she had suddenly vanished into thin air or some sorts.

"Now, let's get this show started with our opening event," Rothion gestured to the curtains and the gates that spewed mist. "PLEASE WELCOME THE CIRCUS OF FEAR!"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**I'm sorry this took so long! I had school starting already! Please don't forget to review! Thank you!**


	5. Circus of Fear

**Me: Hi guys, sorry for the late update! Of course when I don't get much reviews – I don't update as fast or I don't update at all. It kinda tells me that the story isn't worth reading or not good enough. So do send me your reviews! Even if it's criticisms, I'm willing to take. Please do it in a polite and eloquent way like instead of saying it sucks outright you can say something like "I kinda found this part a little weird because..." then whatever your reason is. See? There's a way! No need to put bad words in every blazing sentence. That's pretty rude. By the way, I don't own anyone from Fairy Tail except the members of the Circus of Fear, the city of Magnus and the concept of their powers and this fanfiction.**

"_All eyes on me in the centre of the ring just like a Circus."_

_-Britney Spears, "Circus" from the Album "Blackout"_

Chapter 5 – Circus of Fear

Laxus' eyes widened as the gates opened with mist pouring out. Fairy Tail stared in awe and remembered their version of the Circus of Fear. They had the Fantasia Parade and people from all over Magnolia went over to watch their performances. He had never seen something this big when the whole island would come all the way to the town square to see the Circus of Fear perform. Loud applauses and cheers roared from the crowd as everyone stared in amazement as the music began playing. Rothion gestured to the gates, twirling around his cane in a fancy fashion.

"Ladies and gentlemen, presenting to you – the little girl who could command an army! An army of steel that no man could imagine," Rothion nodded proudly. "She may be small but she's got an army that could make any man cringe in fear – please welcome, ISABELA REGINA CAROL THE PUPPETMASTER!"

The bass thundered as Timbaland's "Give it A Go" began to play. The audience cheered and roared wildly while swinging banners and flags with Isabela's face on it. Robots marched out with their dance moves as the crowd began to chant loudly. A huge red robot with two heads beat its chest and spun its robotic heads before letting out a mechanical growl. Noisy Boy's flaming tattoos glowed brightly as it performed a 4 hit boxing combo and strode inn with some confidence. Midas raked its fingers through its red flare on its helmet while a silver robot jumped up and down and did human-like boxing.

"Zeus! Zeus! Zeus!"

Laxus' eyes widened as a huge black and green robot marched out proudly with a girl sitting comfortably on its shoulder. Its eyes glowed green and beat its chest with a mechanical growl. Charging up its pistons and having the nitrous glowing in its arms, Zeus punched rapidly and shattered a huge boulder as Isabela carved the boulder with her name on it using the Machinator gloves. Soon, her whole group of robots began dancing with her as she leapt off and landed in front of the whole robotic army.

_Just give it a go go, _

_Give it a go,_

_Give it a go go_

"Watch me turn it on," Isabela punched the air with a triumphant grin as fireworks exploded from behind her and the robots.

The crowd roared and cheered as the Thunder Dragonslayer saw how his guild-mates were all amazed by her performance. Laxus watched her grin wildly as he caught a whiff of a cinnamon scent from the front as he started looking around. Where was it coming from? His eyes widened when the scent centred right on Isabela as she ushered the robots to one side. His eyesight suddenly became black and white as he found a mahogany scent emerging from Isabela as she started moving around, greeting all her fans.

_Tch, what the hell-?_

Laxus waved away the scent as she stood under the spotlight, jumping onto Zeus' shoulder once again. As soon as his vision resumed to normal, Laxus shook his head and began glancing around if anyone had noticed anything. Thankfully, the _Raijinshuu_ continued to be distracted by the huge display of robots following a little girl half their size. The blonde male remained silent as he saw the robots line up and fire a whole array of bullets and lasers to form Isabela's name in the air.

"Now wasn't that impressive from a 14 year old girl! But wait, there's more," Rothion watched the crowd immediately move to the edge of their seats. "I'm sure everyone knows the Fire Lord am I right?"

Howls and chants could be heard as the lights dimmed considerably. Sting began looking around as Lector shovelled fish into his mouth, looking around as well. Rogue watched the little flaming sprite emerge from under his cloak and started float around. Soon, blue flaming butterflies began fluttering around as they started swirling around the whole room. Bright blue lights shone throughout the room like will-o-wisps as they danced gracefully in the air.

"Presenting to you now, the Unstoppable, the Blazing and the Burning Hot Flame Dancer – Katherine Excellion!"

A huge blue phoenix rose in the air with bolts of lightning crackling before finally slamming into the ground with Katherine emerging from the blue flames. Cheers echoed loudly as a huge smirk appeared on her face as she spun around for a quick shot of flames. From her feet, she unleashed fireballs before unleashing a flaming arc. Targets rose from the ground as the flames started smashing into them, turning them into nothing but useless piles of ash. With a cocky smirk on her face, Katherine suddenly jumped high into the air before kicking hard and sending more flames into a beautiful array of flashing lights.

"Oooh," Lector's eyes widened as she controlled a huge blue flaming dragon. "She's so cool!"

Natsu jumped up and down like a child, grinning excitedly. "Fight me!"

Upon hearing that, Katherine smirked as she hurled a blue phoenix-shaped flame towards him. Everyone's eyes widened as it flew straight towards Natsu as she suddenly jumped onto its back and slid down from the tail going to its head. Loud grinding sounds echoed from her boots as she jumped off and the flame followed her foot when she kicked it towards the next target. The bird screamed in its full battle glory before crashing straight into the huge robot target. The audience howled and cheered in delight as she kicked off the air to create a mid-air butterfly kick before spinning around for more blue flames.

"There it is, the GRAND FANG FIRE BIRD!"

"She's so awesome!"

Sting chuckled in amusement, watching the brunette amaze the crowd with huge flame animations. Katherine zoomed around the field and created a wild wall of blue flames. She then sprung up into the air with a twist of her body as a blue flaming tornado sprouted from the ground and whirled around her from beneath. Sting's eyes widened in amazement as she kicked off and dove straight to the ground. The crowd gasped in horror until Katherine powered up her feet with blue flames and hovered three inches off the ground. The crowd wildly applauded as he chuckled in amusement, shaking his head.

"She's not bad," Sting scoffed lightly, folding his arms. "I managed to fight her to a stalemate awhile ago."

And for her final move, Katherine sent out a couple of punches filled with blue flames and blue lightning creating more fireworks and flaming butterflies before tucking her right arm under her left arm, giving them the finger.

She smirked with a "challenge-accepted" smirk with a snarky glint in her eyes. "KILL!"

The crowds in Magnus cheered wildly and the other wizards from Fiore could only gawk in astonishment with her huge display. They thought only Natsu could create that kind of destruction but controlling was another matter. Lucy glanced at herself, realizing how she was sweating from the flaming performance. Katherine on the other hand looked like she didn't even break a sweat with hurting herself over the performance. Natsu on the other hand ate the left-over flames with a huge grin on his face.

"Whoo, it tastes better when it's cooled down," Natsu rubbed his stomach contentedly, grinning childishly.

"Thank you," Rothion chuckled lightly as he glanced at the audience, nodding in agreement. "Quite a sizzling performance now wasn't it?"

The audience howled and chanted for more as Kevyn took her place next to Isabela, waiting for the next performance.

"Alright, for the next performance we have the dancer among crystals! She's the only one who can send a whole world into a world of dreams without them sleeping," Rothion grinned in delight, gesturing to the ceiling. "Please welcome our Illusionist – Marina Kristallnacht!"

Mirrors suddenly flew around and formed staircases as Marina stepped down with a sweet smile, clapping her hands. Mirrors rose into the air as they started carving into huge animals. Children stared in awe and began frolicking among the crystal animals as squirrels and rabbits started jumping around. Marina waved around with a huge smile and blew crystal dust towards the crowd as it pieced itself together and created horses, rearing and neighing into life. Rogue stared in amazement as butterflies floated in his face and mounted gently on his nose.

Frosch saw the swimming fish as she tried to catch it without much success. "Rogue – there's fish everywhere!"

Rogue laughed softly, looking at the crystal dragon floating around. "Yeah, nice isn't it?"

After the dragon, Marina soon started forming a dome around herself as it started whirling around with a low humming sound. She glanced at Kevyn and Isabela as the two nodded immediately danced around with their own skills. Isabela summoned her Machinator Gloves and blasted beams towards the mirrors as many rainbow lights started flashing in the dome. Katherine conjured crackling lightning bolts and sent them sparkling towards the mirrors as they burst into tiny azure glitters and beams.

"Heh," Orga folded his arms, shaking his head. "I can do something bigger than that!"

Sting smirked in amusement, watching the other mages emerge from the gates. "We all can. Let's see how well they can do in combat!"

Unknown to him, Isabela picked up Sting's comment before crafting herself a microphone. "Hey, blondie! I heard ya! You think you can do better than us?"

The whole crowd gaped in admonishment as Sting stood up with a huge smirk on his face, folding his arm. "Those robots won't even lay a finger on me!"

"That's because she's not fighting you."

Isabela's eyes widened as Katherine cracked her knuckles with a challenging smirk, taking the microphone from her. "If I were you, I'd give up before you look like chicken shit on the road. A retard like you will be burned and electrocuted into pieces. You'll be better off having me numbing your tongue since you have such a busy mouth."

"Heh, bring it," Sting grinned as he lunged straight at Katherine with his hands glowing white.

The people gawked in admonishment and Minerva face-palmed at the impulsiveness of her guild-mate as fists began to fly. Rogue, seeing that his partner had jumped in, proceeded to drag Sting back before anything happened. Nina lunged at Rogue with her gloves glowing as she materialized the iron suit. The Shadow Dragonslayer found himself knocked over by a rocketing suit as blue flames slammed against Sting and pushed the two Dragonslayers back. As the two sent in their attacks, Nina and Kevyn split up and zoomed towards them.

"What's the problem? Are you getting tired," Nina smirked lazily as missiles sprouted from her shoulders and flew straight towards Rogue.

The Shadow Dragonslayer deflected the missiles, wincing from the impact. On the other hand, Sting unleashed a white barrage as Katherine punched out huge blue flames. She glided towards him with blue flames bursting from her feet and fists. Sting fell back as he bumped into Rogue as the two girls continued their attacks. Marina yelped as she put up a shield around the crowd to prevent them from getting hurt.

"Come on, where's your lightning bolts," Sting sneered mockingly, leaping away from one of the missiles flying towards him. "Afraid I'm gonna floor you?"

Katherine twitched and quickly conjuring electricity, using the tip of her two fingers. "Lightning? I'LL SHOW YOU LIGHTNING!"

Lightning crackled and thundered around as the whole stadium was covered with a bright blue light as her eyes watched Sting carefully. As he suddenly stopp3ed and tripped over, she immediately fired the lightning bolts and blasted him towards the wall. The crowd gasped in awe and cheered on for more as Katherine dashed towards him and threw a left hook before spinning around for a roundhouse kick. Sting blocked her kick but Katherine slugged him in the jaw and sent him sprawling onto the ground. Moving out of the way, Sting snorted in annoyance as he and Rogue prepared to combine their attack until their eyes widened and found Kevyn and Nina way ahead of them.

"Unison Raid," Nina sniggered as she summoned a huge mechanical suit, pulling out two big cannons.

Kevyn chuckled in amusement and powered the suit with her own electrical power. "Justice Infinity!"

"White Shadow Dragon Lightning Claw," both Dragonslayers threw their attack forward, unleashing a huge white and black blast.

Before their attacks made contact, a mirror appeared as a huge light consumed the whole battlefield. A loud shattering of glass echoed as Marina fell back, slamming her back against the wall. She let out a loud yelp as the glass shards fell around her, leaving her unconscious. Rogue's eyes widened before it suddenly narrowed into reptilian slits before he let out a draconic howl.

_She hurt her, Rogue._

_Are you going to let her get away with that?_

_What a cocky little bitch, maybe we should shut her up._

"No, no, no," Rogue felt his fibres burning as all his fury began boiling in his throat, lunging straight at Nina and Kevyn.

Sting's eyes widened as Rogue suddenly rushed forward towards Nina and Kevyn while becoming a shadow. He began swishing and attacking both girls as Nina immediately conjured an armour and deflected his attacks. However, Rogue peeled apart the armour like a banana and punched her hard enough to send her flying. Nina tumbled back as Katherine began fighting toe to toe with an angry Rogue. Blue flames smashed into black clouds of shadow as Katherine kept her eyes watching the black shades. However, her eyes widened when Rogue suddenly appeared in front of her and slammed his fist into her stomach. Katherine keeled over as she struggled to fight back against Rogue.

"Heh," Katherine leapt away as she fired more attacks at Rogue, deflecting his attacks with a darkened smirk. "These little charades of mine finally paid off. I knew eventually a big fish like you would take the bait. Looks like I was right. You've drooling in anticipation! Bring it on, you sack of shit!"

Rogue hissed darkly before changing into shadows while Kevyn engulfed herself in blue lightning bolts. With equalled speed, Katherine and Rogue exchanged blows with her foot meeting his face and his fist meeting her jaw. She spun around for a kick and knocked him down, throwing down huge blue flames towards him. More flames rushed towards Rogue until the Shadow Dragonslayer suddenly zoomed past the flaming projectiles and proceeded to grab Katherine by her neck and strangle her. In a quick motion, she kicked him away but not before falling on the ground and wincing from the recoil. The berserk Rogue staggered back but prepared to continue his attack until Sting locked him up in a full nelson.

"Whoa, slow down," Sting struggled as Rogue growled and snarled at the two girls. "Dude, take it easy! Rogue!"

Rogue had pushed all reasoning towards the back of his mind as he turned on Sting as well. With one kick, Rogue sent Sting flying and slamming against the mirror as he then returned his attention to Nina and Kevyn. A malicious grin curved up his lips as he rushed towards Nina until a huge yellow lightning bolt flashed in front of her, revealing Laxus standing in front of her. Rogue staggered back before preparing to rush towards him again.

"L-Laxus," Fried gaped at the sight of the leader of the _Raijinshuu_ standing in front of an angry Rogue, immediately drawing his sword. "Let me…!"

"Forget it," Laxus narrowed his eyes at the berserk Shadow Dragonslayer, generating electricity with a huge smirk. "I hadn't had a good fight in days…"

When Laxus finished his sentence, Rogue sneered vindictively and lunged towards Laxus. The blonde Dragonslayer grabbed his face and flung him aside, staying in front of Nina and not moving a single inch. Nina clambered up to her feet, immediately summoning the Machinator Gloves.

"The hell are you doing – Buzz Lightyear," Nina coughed out her fatigue, watching Rogue's movement. "What the hell is wrong with this guy?"

Laxus snorted in annoyance, shooting more lightning bolts. "You got me."

Lightning bolts crackled as Rogue rushed towards him again with his shadows engulfing his body. The lightning bolts harmlessly bounced off Rogue as he unleashed black shadow strikes, smacking Laxus around while dodging Nina's attempts to blast him. Laxus winced slightly before kicking Rogue aside before realizing what he was doing. What in the world is happening to him? Since when did he always come to the small Gearcraft's wizard's defence? Katherine fired more blue flames roaring towards Rogue as the raging Dragonslayer glared angrily and lunged towards her. As Rogue knocked her down, he prepared to rip out her throat until a pale blonde blur tackled him over with teal green eyes glowing.

"Rogue, get a hold of yourself," Sting snarled draconically as his hands began to glow, rushing towards his berserk best friend. "And – DO. NOT. TOUCH. MY. TREASURE."

Katherine twitched furiously as she unrolled the belts on her arms and began sparking it with electricity, lunging past Sting. "What the fuck – are you fucking retarded?! I don't belong to anybody!"

Blue lightning crackled as she wrapped the belts around Rogue's arms before sailing over him, twisting over and bringing him down. Rogue crashed down to the ground, growling and glaring vengefully. Sting suddenly moved in and stood in between Katherine and lunged at Rogue to pin him down, roaring wildly. Rogue snarled back at him before throwing him off. The Shadow Dragonslayer's eyes widened however when Katherine suddenly wrapped the belts around his arms, preparing to shock him to death until Marina jumped onto Rogue, shielding him from Katherine's flaming attack.

"Stop," Marina covered Rogue's body, shivering fearfully from the look in Katherine's eyes. "Kev, please – he's not usually this way! He just recovered!"

Kevyn stopped midway and inhaled deeply, retracing the belts and leaving Rogue flat on the ground. The Shadow Dragonslayer slowly calmed down with his ragged breathing becoming more smooth and calmed. His eyes softened and his fangs became normal human teeth again with his power levels shrinking. Laxus slowly dropped his guard as the mirror walls dropped also with the whole Circus preparing to move in to attack but chose not to. Marina helped Rogue to his feet while Sting kept his arm in front of Katherine.

"Wha, what happened," Rogue shivered violently as he tried to keep his body stable. "What happened here?"

"Rogue!'

"Sting-_kun_!"

The Exceeds rushed to their partners as Frosch clung onto the Shadow Dragonslayer's cloak. "Rogue, p-please...!"

Seeing that his Exceed was about to burst out in tears, Rogue gently picked up the pink frog-suit wearing Exceed and embraced her. "It's okay Frosch. It won't happen again..."

"How dare you!"

Rogue's and Sting's eyes widened as Jiemma stormed towards them and punched them both to the ground. Marina yelped as she shrank at the sight of a glaring Jiemma. Katherine narrowed her eyes, shifting her body into a battle stance. Sting winced in pain as Lector swallowed hard fearfully, looking at his partner. Minerva chuckled in amusement as Orga and Rufus were also held back by the woman. Calypso immediately took her stance in front of her girls, glaring holes at Jiemma.

"You better keep your dragons in check otherwise I may just end up cutting them into pieces," Calypso stared beadily into Jiemma's eyes, looking at the two boys on the ground. "Secondly, do lighten up. It may do your kids a deal of good especially for ours."

Jiemma glared holes into the red haired woman's eyes, glaring at her other members. "Do make sure that your little fire starter shuts up also. Otherwise, she'll be more than just a pile of scrap when we're done with her."

"Damn you son of a bitch," Kevyn prepared to throw a huge flame until Calypso placed her sword in front of her, forcing the girl to relent albeit begrudgingly.

Calypso remained silent as Nina narrowed her eyes when Kevyn smirked darkly, watching the Sabertooth ready themselves for an attack. Laxus stayed near Nina as the whole Fairy Tail prepared to move in case Laxus got involved. All the other guilds prepared to move in case an all-out war happened between the two parties but Rothion had already stepped in.

"Alright, it all ends here," Rothion narrowed his eyes at both parties, pushing Calypso to surrender. "Jiemma-_san_, I understand your rage and your strict disciplinarian methods with your guild members but please do not implement that on my soldiers. It is not within your jurisdiction."

Jiemma suddenly felt a rush of energy as Rothion simply stood in front of him, drawing back. "Hmph. So be it. I have no reason to deal with the little flies flying around the dirt."

As the members of Sabertooth began to leave, the black haired girl just raised an eyebrow at the Thunder Dragonslayer. "Yes?"

Without any warning, Laxus dragged her off with an annoyed snort. "Tch, come with me."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Fuck, pretty arrogant for a low piece of shit," Katherine scoffed with an annoyed snort, lying against the tree trunk and crunching on an apple. "He has some fucking nerve to prance in like he owns the place, the arrogant dumbass."

The festivities continued despite the heightening tensions between Sabertooth and the Circus. Katherine monitored from far away to avoid the loud sounds and crackling fireworks, staying on patrol and guard duty at the forest boarders. Her eyes watched the people's activities carefully while people continued to not notice that she had already tracked their movements and activities. Marina had returned back to her room to sleep and Nina was dragged off, sputtering and screaming about "foreign abuse" and "attempted kidnap".

Katherine however found herself annoyed by two people: Jiemma and the blonde "retard" that she knew as Sting Eucliffe. He suddenly just decided to jump in and then go in some berserker rage before snarling to his partner that she was "HIS TREASURE". She twitched at the thought, contorting her face into a snarl and generating electricity from her fingertips. She belonged to nobody! Where in the world did he get that kind of thought? Seeing that her powers were flying out of control, Katherine immediately redirected the attack towards the ground as it blasted the ground and made a hole right through it. With a deep sigh, Katherine found a potted plant nearby that began outgrowing its pot. Taking it out, Katherine placed it in the hole before anyone could wonder why there was a gaping hole in the ground.

"You look a little bothered."

Katherine unleashed a huge blue lightning bolt, illuminating the pathway and missing her target by a few inches. "Tch, don't just do that, you wuss. I could have ripped you into shreds."

"Tut, tut, so unlady-like and here you wonder why Marina is doing her best to rub off on you," a sly grin emerged from the shadows, revealing a silver haired male with his eyes closed wearing an animal tamer's suit. "Even Carol-_chan_ sounds so crass except she's more lady-like about her crudeness. You're just plain unlady-like."

Katherine scowled darkly, rolling her eyes. "Go fuck yourself in a ditch, Oliver."

Oliver pouted childishly, coyly sliding over to the Flame Dancer. "That's not something you should say to someone who is concerned about you. After all, you do look a bit out of it if you shot a lightning bolt in my face especially after he said that you were his treasure."

"Does WHAT bother me? That blonde cocky little punk ass? You gotta be kidding me," Katherine scoffed darkly before playing with a blue flame in her hand.

Oliver chuckled in amusement at Katherine's annoyed expression. "Well, who said I was talking about someone blonde?"

"Who said I was bothered? The only thing bothersome here is you," Katherine tossed the apple core into the air before burning into ashes. "Now get out while I'm still mulling over whether or not I should burn your fucked up ass to the ground."

Oliver shrugged nonchalantly and whistled for his eagle as it swooped down to pick him up, wagging his finger. "Tut tut, you shouldn't be so violent. The world isn't all flames and destruction."

As the animal tamer rose into the air, Katherine stayed alone amongst the trees while watching the festivities. With a sigh, she walked towards the festival. Maybe joining a few games won't be so bad.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Nina sat on her table, folding her legs and staring at a pair of earphones. "Okay… mind telling me what the heck this is?"

"It's my earphones. I need you to fix it," Laxus folded his arms, narrowing his eyes at the smaller girl.

_Why am I here again?_

Laxus glanced at his earphones before meeting the lazy smirking expression of the smaller girl. Nina sat on her chair before easing her position and shifting her legs towards the armrest of the chair, picking and pulling all sorts of metal to construct something. She lazily wagged her finger around before stifling a yawn, rolling her eyes in the process.

"Fix my earphones," Laxus folded his arms with an annoyed snort, raising an eyebrow. "It's easy for someone who constructs robots right?"

Nina chuckled in amusement, playing with her hair lazily. "Meh, that depends. I haven't come in contact with Fiore technology before. There's only a limit to how much I can fix."

The Thunder Dragonslayer raised his eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"You think I can randomly summon robots out of nowhere? That's gold," Nina guffawed loudly, kicking herself away from her desk and revealed all the blue prints on her corkboard. "I designed all of them and made sure everything works. If I don't design it first, the whole armour's going to break to pieces."

Laxus groaned before pinching his forehead. "Let me guess – you need me to get the manual of the earphones before you can fix it?"

"Yeah, basically," Nina started fixing other robots, magnetically attracting her screw driver and many of her other tools. "So, go get me the manual, Sparky."

"Can't you analyse the workings with your magic," Laxus handed her his earphones as the girl began looking at it carefully.

Nina pursed her lips for a moment, checking the whole gadget before looking at the blonde Thunder Dragonslayer. Laxus folded his arm and leaned against the wall, inhaling the cinnamon scent filling the room. He chuckled in amusement and watched her draw it out on her notebook, taking a few notes before revealing a few mathematical equations on her spinning blackboard. Letting out a deep sigh, she placed it on the table and clapped her hands. A bright crimson enchantment circle swirled around the earphones and several holographic screens suddenly emerged with words and codes appearing. Her eyes glanced and scanned the data before letting the lights fade.

"There's nothing wrong with it. Whaddya want me to do? Change your playlist? Because you should, you listen to crappy stuff."

Laxus' eyes snapped open; what? There was nothing wrong with it? "What do you mean there's nothing wrong with it?"

"There's nothing wrong with it," Nina shrugged nonchalantly, tossing his earphones into his face. "The only thing wrong with it is probably your head. You have a horrible playlist. Besides, what the heck is wrong with it?"

"I hear songs that I've never put in my playlist before," Laxus scowled deeply, placing his earphones back on. "I don't listen to Adam Lambert and that blonde country chick."

Nina gasped in admonishment and flipped her hair, rolling her eyes sarcastically. "Adam Lambert is amazing. Of course a peasant like you isn't going to understand that. And "that blonde country chick" is Taylor Swift. Her music's okay."

"Tch, just get 'em fixed already," Laxus folded his arms and sat on her couch.

"Yeah yeah, shut up," Nina waved her hand dismissively, whistling for one of her robots revealing a huge wheeling arm. "Get me my tools, Dummy. Someone here doesn't wanna believe me that his earphones won't set him on fire."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Marina on the other hand stayed with Rogue as they walked around the festival together. The blonde girl looked around at everything with her eyes widening in delight. Rogue chuckled lightly as Frosch mounted on his shoulder, looking around while contentedly eating a barbecued fish on a stick.

"Ooh look," Marina dragged Rogue along and found a huge stuffed toy stand, seeing toy guns. "Stuffed Toys!"

Rogue blinked several times, unable to suppress a helpless chuckle. He watched Marina scan around the vicinity and start looking around for more stuffed toys. However, her eyes widened with amazement as she looked at the big white unicorn hanging on the wall with purple wavy hair and bluish white diamonds marking its butt with bright blue eyes. The gypsy girl stared at it for a few moments before shaking herself out of her thoughts.

"Rarity," Marina immediately brightened up and paid the owner and began shooting the target, only to have the ball bounce right off harmlessly.

She frowned slightly before trying again and again. The Shadow Dragonslayer watched her try again and again, in desperation to get the toy. She had tenacity and determination – he'll give her that. He chuckled lightly before nodding at Frosch as the pink frog suit wearing Exceed jumped off his shoulder and walked next to him. Sighing deeply, Rogue stepped up and held her hand before she could pay another jewel to the man.

"Let me try," Rogue smiled kindly as Marina looked like she wanted to cry.

"But I tried thrice and still won't go down," Marina pouted childishly, sniffing slightly and trying to suppress a whine and sob.

Rogue definitely knew that the targets were very weighted. Glancing at the bullets in the form of tennis ball, Rogue slipped his magic into the gun without anybody noticing. Closing his eyes, Rogue also controlled the force to make it explode only when it touched the target. Frosch dismounted as she stood next to Marina, watching in excitement.

"Is he really going to try," Marina glanced at the Exceed, shaking her head sadly. "I've tried three shots and that target still refused to move."

Frosch punched the air with her paw confidently. "Fro knows Rogue can get it! He will get it!"

And fair enough, one shot exploded from the gun as the ball exploded the target with enough force to shatter the wooden target. The merchant's eyes widened in surprise as Marina could only gawk at the explosive force. She rubbed her eyes several times; how in the world did he do that? The mirror wizard shook her head and continued to gape at Rogue's calm demeanour as he got the unicorn and handed it to her.

"Here you go," Rogue gave the unicorn to Marina.

Marina weakly took it before hugging it tightly with a huge contented smile. "Yay, thank you!"

Rogue let a helpless smile curve up his lips as he saw how happy the blonde girl was to receive the stuffed toy. She started shaking it, hugging it and even twirling around with it as Rogue and Frosch continued to walk along with her. He felt a warm feeling bubbling from his chest while watching her embrace her unicorn tightly. He couldn't understand why but seeing her so bubbly and joyful didn't seem as irritating as most of the fan girls who would be shrieking in his ear or screaming his name. Her kindness didn't seem so cloying and irritating as she started playing with Frosch while the Exceed snuggled against her chest.

He could only smile and chuckle while walking along the stony pathway lit up by fireflies.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**That's Chapter 5! Although, I'm planning to change the concept of the Circus of Fear since it doesn't seem to be getting reviews. All characters however will remain the same, along with their personalities and powers. Please tell me your thoughts for this! Because if I don't get any reviews, I won't be able to cater to your tastes! So, please review.**


	6. How Not To Impress A Girl

**]\Me: Wow, I'm not sure if this story just plain sucks or what. Nobody's reviewing or saying anything so I'm not sure if I even should continue this story or I might as well delete it. If it doesn't get a review, I'm going to redo this whole story from scratch. Yes, from scratch. I do accept criticisms; don't be afraid to criticize it. I'll take it in very well and it will help me cater to your tastes as readers. Most of the time, I see Lucy fanfics running around. No offense to Lucy or the Lucy fans but, I kinda find her to be too much into the damsel-in-distress archetype. Sure she can have her redeeming qualities but she's basically the trigger to Natsu's insane power that blows up stuff. Please do review! It will help me make this story better! I don't own Fairy Tail, I only own the OCs, the concept of their powers and this fanfiction's plotline!**

"_Oh she makes me feel like shit (it's always something)_

_But I can't get over it (she thinks it's nothing)_

_'Cause she's everything I ask for..."_

"Everything I Ask For" by The Maine

Chapter 6 – How Not To Impress A Girl

Sting expected Katherine to be flattered by the fact he called her his "treasure".

Well, most girls would be flattered by it.

Except, the only response he got from her was a huge blue fireball in the face and probably a whole lot of lightning bolts.

Sting continued to walk around, looking at the other game stands. Some shops were selling food and the others were selling trinkets. He scowled darkly while Lector began reading a book and following him around. Heck, where did that crazy woman go? He snorted in annoyance; every time he wanted a good match with her, it always ended up in a tie or being interrupted. Sighing deeply, he saw Rogue walking along with the blonde girl. So she was the girl Rogue blew a fuse over, Sting nodded slowly while continuing to walk along when he found a couple of games.

"Step right up! Shoot the target and win a prize," the shopkeeper grinned while pointing at the other prizes.

Sting looked at it carefully for a moment before noticing Rogue and Marina chatting with each other. Much to the blonde's surprise however, he saw Rogue smiling and actually chuckling along with whatever the blonde had said. He blinked several times; when had Rogue become so cheery? It wasn't part of the black haired male's personality! He glanced however at the stuffed toy sitting in Marina's hands and how she embraced it with all her might, snapping his fingers.

"Appeal with cuteness," Sting chuckled lightly and rolled his eyes to the corner to see the stuffed toys hanging on the wall, rubbing his hands together deviously. "This should be easy."

Lector saw the glint in Sting's eyes, cheering him on. "Go Sting-_kun_!"

Sting chuckled lightly before placing three jewels on the table. "I'll go for a couple of shots."

The man nodded and took the coins, handing him three balls. "Alright, knock down the bottles and win a prize!"

As Sting went to load up the balls, the shopkeeper shook his head. "There's no way that kid's gonna break the bottles."

"He's the great Sting-_kun_! There's no way he'll lose," Lector pouted indignantly and glanced proudly at his Dragonslayer partner, folding his arms with a haughty huff.

Sting loaded up the tennis balls into the gun, chuckling confidently. "He-he, this should be easy."

Now everyone knew Sting as not the sharpest tool in the shed or the brightest crayon in the box. But when it came to games, there was one thing Sting was very good at: cheating and hacking it out. Rogue actually got most of his cheating skills in Arcade Games from the crazy blonde himself. The reason why Rogue knew how to power that cannon to increase the attacking power of the ball? Well, that all came from the blonde Dragonslayer who simply wanted to see how big an explosion a tennis ball could make with a single shot and because he wanted a new toaster oven to see if he could fry bacon in it. When he finally got the toaster, Rogue could not believe it was possible for bacon to burn into ashes.

But apparently, Sting made it possible.

And without even trying, Sting immediately stored his power into the tennis ball inconspicuously before blasting it out. Sting smirked as the ball flew towards the bottles and hid his hands behind his back. The moment it made contact with the bottles and with a snap of his fingers, the ball suddenly gained a punch and shattered the bottles easily. The storekeeper's eyes widened in admonishment as Sting grinned triumphantly. The blonde looked carefully before looking at the stuffed toys before seeing two stuffed toys: one is a black dragon and a blue Pegasus pony with rainbow coloured hair. The facial expression of the rainbow haired Pegasus did remind him of her and the lightning bolt on its hind leg looked pretty cool. He did remember watching a movie with dragons. What was it called again? How to Train a Dragon?

"Give me another round and I'll take the dragon and the flying horse over there."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

After leaving his headsets with Nina, Laxus strolled around the city while looking through the festivities. Well, the woman wasn't kidding. Magnus threw an entire celebration to welcome back their king and people put up floats and Mardi gras dancers. Confetti and fireworks burst into the sky as loud music began to play. Fried and the other members of the _Raijinshuu_ followed behind him as they started observing the other things. Kids started chasing one another with their ice cream filled faces as they grinned and giggled in delight.

"Wow, Magnus must really have a lot of time on their hands to make a celebration this big," Evergreen chuckled darkly, raising an eyebrow at the performers who held their own plays and the sorts. "Hmph, I do hope that if Magnus gets attacked – they'll be ready."

Bixlow grinned maniacally, looking at the other dolls. "Gehehe, there's so many dolls to choose from for my new babies~."

Laxus shook his head and continued looking around until he found a huge arena with flashing lights. Curious and watching the _Raijinshuu _slowly get absorbed with one thing or another, the blonde male slowly made his way there and saw robots punching each other. On one side, there was a screen floating in mid-air and fingers dragging it around in the air. One side had three grown men were tuning up a triple headed blue and red robot while a black hooded small figure started climbing up and started fixing up Zeus. He was pretty sure Zeus belonged to Nina but how did that thing suddenly end up in the hands of another user. He raised an eyebrow; who was that and why did that person have Zeus?

"Heh, whoever that is got this one right in the bag," Laxus folded his arms, noticing people giving out bets.

"Bets for Triple Threat and Zeus – who's gonna win it all? Will it be the Raiden Brothers or will it be the one and only Little Black Riding Hood?"

_Little Black Riding Hood? Who the,_ Laxus swivelled his head to the other controls as he found a black hooded girl, sitting by the controls. He tried to sniff her out to find out if she was the same Isabela Carol but the scents of people and food were all over the place. The howls and cheers didn't help either as he focused at the hooded figure sitting at the controls. She definitely didn't look like the same Puppet Master during the demonstration but Zeus looked awfully familiar. For all he knew, it was her signature robot.

"You sir," – the thunder Dragonslayer suddenly swivelled his head towards the man collecting the bets. "What would you like to bet on?"

Laxus chuckled in confidence and handed out a couple of gems, shaking his head. "All or nothing on Zeus."

Everyone howled in amazement as the guy collecting the bets nodded, grinning. "Excellent choice."

Suddenly, the lights in the arena dimmed as there were spotlights flashing to and fro. People cheered loudly as Laxus tried to get a good view although with his height, it wasn't too hard to get a good view. As the blonde thunder Dragonslayer made his way through the crowds and finally got to a decent seat, Laxus took a seat and watched the announcer descend from the ceiling on some disk being suspended by a couple of ropes.

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls – are you ready for some REAL STEEL," the announcer grinned in delight as fireworks exploded behind him, causing the crowd to break into a wild frenzy. "Now here it is folks – from the challenger side we have the three headed terror of the underground world! He storms and he punches faster than a hurricane! Please welcome TRISTATE MASTER!"

A three headed robot stormed towards the stage, growling and beating its chest. The crowds cheered wildly and howled as Tristate Master started walking around as if it were absorbing all the cheers from the crowd. Laxus chuckled in amusement as the robot growled with power. He didn't know such thing was possible with robots. The only robot he had probably seen and heard about was the Nirvana and maybe some other devices but he had never heard of something this crazy.

"And from the Champion – we have the god of the machines! The robot that can put any fighter to shame – we haaaaaave ZEEUUUUUS," he gestured to one side as a black and green robot stomped its way up. "PLEASE WELCOME THE _DEUM DE MACHINIS_ – ZEUS!"

The cheering had become extremely deafening as Zeus stormed the ring before punching the air, displaying its strength and power. Tristate Master didn't seem very intimidated but Laxus shook his head at the sight of the three headed machine before throwing a glance at Zeus. The black robot hummed to life with green lights flashing from some of its transparent parts of its body, revealing pump-like arms. Laxus shook his head – he had never seen that kind of technology in Fiore. The most advanced thing they probably had was the lacrima communicator. As is, it was pretty advanced but to make huge robots that had almost human features yet could deliver more explosive power than humans – that's something new.

"May the best machine win," the announcer grinned as both robots faced off each other. "Ready – RUMBLE!"

The crowds howled and cheered as Tristate Master marched in to confront Zeus. On the other hand, the big black robot didn't even seem to be even bothered by Tristate Master's attempt at intimidation. Laxus' eyes widened as the opposing robot slammed its fist against Zeus' metal abdomen only to not make a single dent on it. Green eyes flashed as Zeus suddenly punched its stomach followed by a whole machine gun combo punch, sending Tristate Master against the rails. People "ooh"ed and "aah"ed while wincing at every blow the champion gave to the challenger, causing some of the metal panels to crunch under the power. The blonde thunder Dragonslayer shook his head in surprise as many people began to cheer. Zeus just stalked towards Tristate Master before punching the opposing robot's head with a mean left hook followed by a right hook.

"Heh, this looks fun," Laxus raised an eyebrow in interest as Zeus dealt the final blow with a huge uppercut and sent Tristate Master out of the ring with his body in pieces. "I supposed I can borrow a robot around here."

As soon as they started pouring jewels into his hands, Laxus chuckled in amusement as he glanced at Zeus once more. He soon started searching around and found a robot lying around in the trash. Quizzical, Laxus walked over to the junk pile and looked at the robot pieces. If getting a robot was the only way to participate in the crazy tournament, sure – why not? Apparently, all the jewel winnings were devoted more to Tristate Master.

"How much for those parts and pieces," Laxus pointed towards it as the junkmen shrugged.

"Nobody wants this stuff, we just use it to make other machines like cable cars and the sorts," the junkman glanced at the broken and slightly sparking pieces. "Why?"

Laxus pulled two hundred Jewels, slapping it in the man's hand. "Two hundred Jewels and I take that all off your hands."

The junkman's eyes sparkled in delight as he grabbed the jewels. "Done!"

Watching the man scamper away triumphantly, Laxus glanced at the pieces before looking at Zeus. "Hmmm, this should be a little complicated..."

Although he didn't have much knowledge in robots, Laxus was pretty sure that he knew exactly where some parts went. All they had to do was look human right? Picking up a head, he started attaching it to the shoulders before looking through a couple of more pieces in the bag. The robot started coming out pretty well as he continued welding on some arms and the legs onto the robot. Finished with the outer hull, he found a data board labelled "SHADOWMASTER v6.0.1" and a controller thrown along with it. He didn't have much knowledge on computers but he was pretty sure he could assemble a TV. It was supposed to be all colour matching right? One by one, he began to plug the wires in the sockets before he gave it a good electric shock to jumpstart it. The robot soon hummed to life as he got the controller which started to show the energy levels and damage sustained.

"Right hook," Laxus commanded.

No response.

Laxus groaned as he slapped his forehead in annoyance only to hear something _clank _as well. His eyes widened as he looked up at the robot as it started imitating him. His eyes narrowed a little as he tilted to one side, the robot did as well. He threw a left jab and the robot threw a left jab. His eyes widened when he saw Zeus standing triumphantly before looking back at the robot he had.

"Does anyone dare challenge the champion – The Unconquerable Black Riding Hood!?"

Laxus saw his chance and took one last glance at his robots before he chuckled and stepped up front with his hand raised in an eerily calm voice, smirking determinedly. "I dare."

Everyone gasped as even the person known as Black Riding Hood suddenly stood up from the seat. Basing on everyone's reactions, Laxus somewhat felt that he was the first person to declare a challenge to Zeus outright in the middle of nowhere with no formal paperwork. As he looked at the sea of horrified and incredulous expressions, Laxus stepped forward as he stood in the ring with his arms folded. The whole crowd became silent as he stood in front of the announcer, without flinching or batting an eyelash. He stared at Zeus without even showing hints of fear but instead a cocky smirk curved up his lips – things are about to get fun!

"I dare, got a problem with that," Laxus chuckled darkly, watching Black Riding Hood shift uneasily in the seat.

"But sir," the announcer prepared to stop him, shaking his head violently. "You can't...!"

"I accept!"

Everyone swivelled their head towards the champion as the Black Riding Hood stood up. Hearing it was a girl's voice, he immediately narrowed his eyes to get a good look. The hood definitely didn't resemble that of the puppet master and even her clothes looked different. Then again, not all of the members from the Circus of Fear wore a default uniform save for the Flame Dancer due to her straight-forward style of combat. She wore a crimson red coat with white diamonds as a pattern with a white collar. Under the coat, she wore a black blouse and a short pink skirt along with light brown stockings and white boots. Laxus tried to get a whiff of her scent and even then there was nothing.

"Alright, place your bets!"

As the match began, the Thunder Dragonslayer immediately went on one side as the Robot followed him around. He sat in front of the robot and gestured. "Watch me – watch what I do."

The bell rung while Laxus then took his place behind Zeus as the robot seemingly followed his movement. People stared in awe as Laxus chuckled in amusement; a robot can only be as smart and as powerful as their master's ideal. The Thunder Dragonslayer watched Zeus' movements carefully as the huge black robot prepared to throw punches. The announcer nodded as he pulled down his microphone, looking at the two robots.

"Alright – a wild card match! The Deus de Machinis Zeus himself along with his master the Unconquerable Black Riding Hood versus," the announcer glanced at Laxus, raising an eyebrow. "Versus...?"

Laxus chuckled in amusement, nodding confidently. "Laxus Dreyar and," – he glanced at his robot for a moment, seeing black and yellow designs similarly to lightning bolts. "Alastor."

"Versus Laxus Dreyar and Alastor," the announcer nodded and pointed at the blonde, gesturing to the robots. "Ready? RUMBLE!"

Zeus stomped its way towards Laxus' robot as Laxus continued to let it watch him. As Zeus threw a right hook, Laxus swung his body down to dodge as his own robot followed his movement. Everyone gawked in astonishment; Zeus never missed a shot before. The robot continued to dodge his attacks as Laxus put his arms similarly to that of a boxer. His eyes watched Zeus carefully as Zeus went for another head shot, causing Laxus to duck and punch Zeus hard in the gut to send it staggering.

"Unbelievable – Laxus plans to take on Zeus himself?! Who knew," the announcer gawked in admonishment, watching the supposedly broken robot fight against Zeus. "Who knew that he was going to rely on the Shadowmaster's function?"

As Zeus threw another left hook, Laxus' robot jumped back as Laxus jumped back before lunging in for a right jab to the face. Again, Zeus took the hit as it crashed against the ropes. Laxus couldn't see the opponent's expression but the whitening of her knuckles seemed pretty obvious she was going for something bigger. Laxus chuckled in amusement as he started taunting it.

"Come on, come a little closer," Laxus jeered mockingly, gesturing it to attack him. "Come on, is that all you've got!?"

"I don't believe it! Is Alastor actually taunting Zeus? No one has ever done that before," the announcer gawked as Zeus roared angrily, charging towards Alastor. "Here he comes!"

Laxus smirked before sidestepping and letting Zeus run past before giving a right hook to its head. The huge black robot staggered forward and the moment it whipped around, Laxus threw another shot to its face. Everyone gawked as Alastor continued throwing punches and turned the whole fight into a one sided match. Zeus threw a nitrous powered punch only to have it dodged and Alastor punched its face in. More punches flew and sweat poured down Laxus' face as he continued to attack. One let-up and Zeus was bound to counter attack. His eyes widened however when Zeus suddenly caught Alastor's fist and flung the robot aside.

"Tch," Laxus bit his lower lip; he couldn't use magic in this game. "Fine, bring it on!"

Zeus roared and with nitrous piston powered punches, began punching Alastor's gut as Laxus continued to shield himself from getting destroyed. With both arms up, the armour plating of Alastor's abdomen didn't take too much damage as Zeus continued barraging it with more punches. Laxus narrowed his eyes, watching the punches slowly get weaker and weaker. As Zeus suddenly stopped, the whole crowd gasped as Laxus finally threw a jab right at it. He threw his own barrage of punches, watching Zeus stagger back. The crowds howled and cheered as Alastor continued to lay its punches.

_Alastor! Alastor! Alastor!_

The chants echoed through the arena as the bell suddenly rung with Alastor's last punch flooring Zeus. The crowds cheered with the judges discussing the results, making the whole crowd wait in anticipation. Laxus lowered his guard as the announcer raised his hand and pointed at Alastor.

"ALASTOR WINS!"

The crowd howled wildly in excitement and amazement as he was the first man to bring down someone like Zeus. Laxus chuckled in amusement and prepared to leave only to have people push him towards the centre of the ring while the announcer gave him the belt. The Black Riding Hood slammed her console before storming off, activating Zeus to follow her. Seeing that she was leaving, Laxus immediately jumped away from the crowds before using his lightning ability. The Little Black Riding Hood suddenly staggered back when Laxus suddenly appeared in front of her.

"Sheesh, what the hell do you want," she snarled darkly as Laxus stood in front of her.

He eyed her carefully before his eyes widened. _Shit, it's not her!_

"Hey, I know I'm pretty fabulous in the ring but it's really rude to stare especially after you just did a freaky light show in front of me, turned Zeus into a puppy and made me look like a freakin' wuss!"

Laxus suddenly swivelled his head as she stormed past him with Zeus shoving him aside. He glanced at the smaller figure vanishing amongst the crowds as he shook his head.

_What was that all about?_

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Okay, what the fuck is that on my bed!?"

Marina suddenly swivelled her head and found two stuffed toys sitting on the bed before noticing that Katherine was baring her fangs and that her honey brown eyes had narrowed into dangerous feline slits. She could distinctly hear flames roaring at the sides of Katherine's fist. She giggled lightly as Katherine continuously began to twitch in annoyance. If there was anything the Flame Dancer was for, it was her capacity to reduce anything she deemed an opponent or an eyesore into ashes. However, she could not see what the problem was.

Other than the black dragon that was on her bed.

That looked like a lizard and that was one of Katherine's most well-guarded secrets.

Her fear of lizards.

"I'm pretty sure it's a stuffed toy, Kevyn," Marina smiled sweetly and picked up the stuffed toy, placing it right in front of Katherine. "See? Isn't he adowable?"

Katherine twitched slightly before narrowing her eyes darkly at the stuffed toy, trying to identify it. She knew she had seen the creature somewhere, recognizing the gummy smile and huge bluish green reptilian eyes staring at her. The Flame Dancer examined every stitch carefully and every marking, to check if it was the real thing. The brunette couldn't believe it herself; she had been looking for this stuffed toy for years!

"T-Toothless," Katherine gawked in astonishment and slowly took it from Marina, checking if it was really legitimate. "You'd gotta be kidding me... I've been looking everywhere!"

Marina shrugged cheerfully with a huge smile on her face. "Yeah someone wanted to..."

"It's cute."

Marina's eyes widened in astonishment as Katherine immediately tackled her bed and began tossing her stuffed black dragon in the air with a huge smile on her face. The Flame Dancer completely ignored her as she embraced her stuffed toy in delight. The blonde girl giggled lightly at the sight of the Flame Dancer rolling around happily in her bed until she stopped right in front of a light blue Pegasus with rainbow coloured hair. Katherine blinked several times before placing Toothless down, taking a look at the pony.

"Wow, this is relatively... cute-sy," Katherine stared at it awkwardly, blinking several times. "Who's this?"

"It's Rainbow Dash! Oh before anything," before Marina could say anything, the door suddenly slammed open and revealed Nina who was completely furious.

"That, that, ARGH," Nina kicked down a trash can with much futility as she ended up stubbing her toe. "STUPID RUST BUCKET!"

Katherine smirked cockily, raised an eyebrow. "What happened to you? Zeus got his wires misconnected?"

"STUPID BUZZ LIGHTYEAR! He just beat my robot with some scrap hunk of metal that he just glued together out of nowhere!"

Katherine chuckled in amusement, playing with a couple of lightning bolts in her fingertips. "Ooh, that's gotta hurt."

"You can bet your butt on it," Nina started throwing out papers from inside her wooden chest. "I made Zeus with an adaptive strategy programming! How could he lose to something with such useless technology like that!?"

Marina blinked several times, staring curiously. "What kind of technology?"

"It's an old technology known as the Shadowmaster – it was only applied to sparring bots in order to enhance a mecha's fighting capabilities," Nina pulled down a poster, scribbling down some equations. "Running the math, the Shadowmaster's capacity is limited to the robot's human-like capacity and whether or not it's capable of putting together a full combo. It replicates and records the former patterns before storing it into its plume disk and unleashing a full torrent of rage towards its opponent. However, the system is a dependent system due to its lack of range and sensory systems."

Marina gawked at her, blinking again. "Um in English?"

"The Shadowmaster is basically something that copies movement," Katherine pinched the bridge of her nose, shaking her head. "The problem is – it has to at least see the person doing it."

"Yeah, what she said – stupid," Nina scoffed before throwing out more blueprints, trashing out her tackle box. "Ergh, that bastard!"

Katherine chuckled before looking at the blonde. "You were saying that someone gave me the stuffed toys...?"

"It was," Marina slowly lowered her head, reducing her voice into a meek and timid whisper.

Katherine however had really sharp ears. And her mouth dropped open before she realized how she had been hugging and cuddling both stuffed toys. Suddenly, her shocked face became more annoyed before she placed the stuffed toys on her window sill. Marina sighed deeply and scratched her head as Katherine narrowed her eyes darkly at anything that had anything to do with Rogue's blonde haired friend. Nevertheless, she felt pretty bad for the Rainbow Dash plushie and the Toothless plushie that sat by her window.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**That's Chapter 6! Sorry for the extremely late update and I'm pretty sure this came out like crap. Please review nonetheless and tell me whether or not I should change the story. Because the other one has a heavier plotline with crazed plot-twists. Here's a sneak peek:**

**Raios now reigns of Fiore with the capital once known as Crocus named as Draconem** **– now the king of Fiore**.** Apparently, he finds out that there are two machines that secure his reign permanently and discovers an aria that opens the gate to the two machines: Avalon and Camlann. The aria must be sung by someone who descends from Those Before and must locate the twelve treasures of the twelve knights of the Round Table and place it on the altar. Along with that, the key of the machines are the two famous warring blades: Excalibur of Avalon and Clarent of Camlann. When he finds out one of them still lives, he razes every town and locates Marina Kristallnacht – daughter of a gypsy who unknown to her is the daughter of Those Before. Only she has the vocal chords, the blood and the magic to access the magic. In attempt to stop him, the other guilds try to locate her – they find two other mages in the game: Katherine Av Åska and Isabella Carol. Will they reach Marina in time and help her realize her powers? Or will Raios destroy the very thing he deemed precious years ago?**

**Tell me what you think! :) **


	7. Dragon's Dream

**Me: I guess I should continue this and leave that other one for another day. Hopefully, I can still remember the plotline for it. But if things get really good, I can fuse it here also and make a whole new shebang for it! XD Thank you for your feedback! Reviews make me happy and hopefully I'll be able to update faster! My school work has gotten a little heavier so, it was a bit hard to keep this one going. Anyway, here it goes – I don't own Fairy Tail! I only own the OCs and the concepts for this fanfiction!**

_And I want these words to make things right_

_But it's the wrongs that make the words come to life_

_"Who does he think he is?"_

_If that's the worst you've got better put your fingers back to the keys_

- Thanks for the Memories by Fallout Boy from Infinity on High

Chapter 7 – Dragons' Dreams

Rogue quietly returned to his room before lying on his bed, staring straight at the ceiling. He couldn't believe that everything had boiled down to this. How could he become that ruthless bastard that just razed everything to the ground? The Shadow Dragonslayer scowled slightly before lying on his side. They couldn't even lay a finger on the dragons both of them were fighting. He balled his hand into a fist and glared absentmindedly at the wall.

_So sad, you're desperately looking for a power that's just right under your nose._

Rogue rolled off the bed with his hands glowing black, whipping straight into a battle stance. "Who said that!?"

_Wow, you can't even recognize me?_

Rogue's eyes widened when he saw his shadow suddenly gain an eye with a malevolent grin on his face. "You're..."

"I'm going to protect Frosch no matter what! My only interest is Gajeel," the shadow grinned with a sing-song note in its voice, suddenly rising up from the ground and staring at Rogue in the eye. "You're so dumb and naive. It's hilarious to see you lie to yourself over and over again. Power is all I need! I don't need anything else! Frosch always bothers me when I'm in the middle of something! Sting's an ass, why the fuck should I work with someone like him? Isn't that right... me?"

Rogue's red eyes narrowed angrily into draconic slits. "Shut up. Right. Now."

"And what about that blonde bimbo? Oh she's such a child, playing with a stupid purple haired unicorn with gems on its ass! She's so sweet – how did she even become part of the military? She totally deserved to get trashed by that Danielli guy! Hah," the shadow swirled and curled around Rogue's body with a malevolent sneer, brushing away a black strand from his ear to whisper. "She's nothing more but an immature little worm under your shoe. You know that, don't you me?"

Rogue remained silent, seething in rage.

"You can keep your mouth shut all you want but you know I'm right," the shadow sneered in delight, swirling around. "Especially about tearing out that Flame Bitch's heart and littering her guts all over the place so Stingy-boy over there will be so fucking vulnerable you can probably kill him with a toothpick! The little robo girl doesn't matter – she can die by some stray fire but she has that lightning bastard to guard her. After that, you can grab your blonde bitch and tear off her clothes to make her scream in agony...!"

Rogue finally snapped and grabbed a chair, hurling it straight at the shadow. "SHUT UP!"

The shadow's eyes widened before vanishing into thin air while the chair smashed straight into the mirror with a loud _crash_. Rogue breathed heavily as he stared at the cracks in the mirror, trying to stop his whole body from trembling violently. What was that all about, Rogue tried to quickly calm himself down but his heart refused to stop pounding in his ears. The chair lay in pieces and many splinters as some shards of the mirror fell on the ground, revealing half only of Rogue's face. The Shadow Dragonslayer could feel his blood boiling furiously inside him and every fibre screaming at him in rage.

"R-Rogue?"

Rogue swivelled his head and found Frosch standing by the door, shivering fearfully. "Frosch?"

"F-Fro w-wanted t-t-to ch-ch-check if y-y-you're okay," Frosch hid behind the door, as if expecting a blow from the Shadow Dragonslayer.

Rogue blinked and straightened up, smiling kindly and bending down to Frosch's height. "Don't worry, I'm fine. I just got a little too angry is all..."

Seeing that his partner was smiling at her, Frosch suddenly stuck up her paw with a huge smile. "Yay, actually – Marina-_san_ wanted to take us to the Cathedral in the middle of Hecate's Square! Can we go? Please can we go? Marina-_san_ said that there was also a place full of fish there!"

Rogue chuckled in amusement; trust Marina to be able to figure out what Frosch liked the most. Then again, most Exceeds had some extreme attraction to fish and most of his groceries involved fish since both of them were clearly alright with a seafood menu. Rogue sighed deeply while looking at his messed up clothes; he didn't have time to pack a new set and if he was going out – at least look normal. The black haired Dragonslayer then proceeded to his closet and his eyes widened in astonishment.

"Okay, where did all these clothes come from and how the heck did they get here," Rogue pulled out red collared shirt and a pair of dark jeans, nodding. "I think this could work..."

However, Rogue couldn't help but hear a sneering and malevolent voice in the back of his head.

_You can lie all you want but that's never going to get you anywhere._

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Sting groaned to himself, sitting on a tree. He had seen every nook and cranny of the damn castle and still nothing interested him. All he saw was the guards making their patrols and many of the servants trying to make sure that everything was in working proper order. He couldn't understand as to why people always had to be so busy but then again, Magnus Citadel was pretty big. The blonde Dragonslayer mused to himself as he noticed two stuffed toys sitting on the window sill, seeing a familiar light blue Pegasus and a black dragon.

"Heh, I'm surprised she didn't throw it away or burn them," Sting chuckled lightly until he heard the door open from the room. "Hm?"

He leapt from the branches when he found Katherine walking inside the room. She quietly closed the door while looking around to see if anyone was outside or around. His eyes widened when she suddenly made her way towards the window as he swung himself up to avoid her line of sight. As the windows opened, Katherine looked out before slowly closing the windows and picked up her stuffed toys. Curious, Sting slowly crept over to the window to get a closer look.

His eyes widened when he found Katherine placing her stuffed toys on the bed before curling up with a contented smile on her face. He saw how her once hard and tough exterior immediately faded into that of a peaceful and childish expression as she curled around her Rainbow Dash plushie. Her boots fell onto the side of the bed while Sting slowly crept into the room. The window creaked open slightly as he slipped in, landing silently on the ground. His eyes widened when he saw Toothless at her night table but Rainbow Dash in her arms.

"Heh, this is gold," Sting smirked evilly, poking her in the ribs.

"Mm," Katherine let out a whine before turning away.

Sting stared at her sleeping form, shaking his head as he slowly climbed on the bed. He brushed away a strand of her wavy mahogany brown hair, looking at her vulnerable expression once more. At the state she was in, at least she wouldn't even burn him. He sat beside her and pondered on his next move, chuckling in amusement.

"Well, she can't be strong ALL the time," Sting smirked in amusement, tickling her sides.

Katherine remained asleep for a moment as she slightly winced. Sting chuckled lightly at her whimpering expression in her sleep before she made herself comfortable again on the bed. The blonde Dragonslayer had never seen the brunette in a meeker demeanour nor did he ever see her sleep like a child. Katherine always had a bolder and a feistier demeanour, taking things head on.

"I'm sorry..."

Sting blinked several times; who was she talking to? What was she talking about? Most importantly, who was she saying sorry to? Heck, she had kicked him in the head several times yet she didn't even bother to apologize. In fact, she actually offered to give him a black eye to match his concussion! Goddamn it, she's fucking crazy, Sting sighed to himself, lowering himself down to inhale the scent of her hair. Much to his surprise, she smelled completely opposite to her personality. She smelled sweet and soft – like honey. His eyes narrowed into draconic slits as he buried his nose into her hair.

_She smells so soothing..._

As he continued running his fingers through her hair, Sting slowly dropped onto her bed and fell asleep.

_Dream_

Sting blinked several times as he found himself standing in a field of blue and white Honeysuckles. The scent of honey filled the air as he looked around and found himself standing in the middle of a mansion garden. White roman columns towered above him with a whole group of servants tailing behind a man. He blinked several times for a moment while walking forward deeper into the hallway.

"Your highness, please stop fooling around!"

His eyes widened when a figure suddenly ran past him. A brown haired girl with a messy ponytail dashed past in a dress with a huge smile on her face as if nothing was wrong. She had a cocky grin before snickering in delight, with her fingers crackling with electricity. A blue bolt suddenly shot out on the ground, leaving a black splotch on the ground and left the guards to suddenly slip and fall over.

"Katherine Lauren Rhapsadias Excellion, please slow down!"

Sting's eyes widened in astonishment; no, Katherine was a princess? Those two words couldn't be in a sentence! And she was from the Excellion family to boot, they were a high class family in Fiore! Princesses were supposed to be refined, kind, cultured, calm and elegant. Not brash, cocky, annoying, feisty and ready to set anything on fire! She would be dancing in ballet, playing the violin and wearing dresses and doing whatever girly stuff. Not fighting and burning down other soldiers.

"Achiiiiiii!" (It means "older sister" in Chinese)

_She has a sister?_

Sting nearly staggered back as the little girl nearly tackled him to the ground.

Suddenly, the whole image was engulfed in a huge blue fire as the whole building crumbled and burned. His eyes widened as he heard loud screeches of terror and wails of children. He staggered back as he heard an electrifying wail of anguish and of vengeance echoing through the hallways. His teal blue eyes widened in astonishment as the princess stormed out with her hands engulfed in blue flames.

"FUCK YOU ALL," Katherine's eyes glimmered with insane rage as she threw blue fireballs at whoever tried to oppose her. "I'LL FUCKING MURDER YOU! LET YOUR SCARS AND WOUNDS BE PROOF AND SPREAD THE WORD! I AM KATHERINE EXCELLION – THE FLAME DANCER FROM HELL! The Flashfire King!"

A blue inferno howled in rage as it consumed the whole building and soon his vision. Sting immediately backed away and deflected the flames, staring in astonishment as he heard someone scream in pain. He brushed away the blue flames and he found a man on a sword. Katherine had some devilish blue electric spark in her eyes as she ruthlessly tossed the man aside.

"You made a fatal mistake," Katherine coldly threw the man on the ground, flicking the blood away from the sword. "Damn you son of a bitch."

He saw her once happy and kind demeanour fade into the cold and cocky one that everyone had seen. Sting stared in horror as the image changed to Katherine taking more horrifying jobs. She had ditched her princess clothes and went straight to assassin robes. His eyes widened as she easily infiltrated a castle of a high ranking official, killed all his guards silently before dispatching him and his whole family – all under the orders of some council. Her eyes seemed devoid of emotion and when they presented her a new target; a vicious smirk appeared on her lips with her eyes narrowing into feline gold ones.

"YOU!"

_Dream End_

Sting suddenly woke up and rolled away as a blue flame shot towards him, revealing Katherine on the bed with flames in her hands. Before he could ask about the dream, Katherine planted a kick in his stomach and knocked him down. His eyes widened with admonishment as she threw another fireball, singing the carpet. The blonde Dragonslayer cockily smirked as he created his own blasts and parried the blue flames rushing towards him.

"You fucking bastard, you better have not touched me with your cow tongue," Katherine hissed devilishly with blue electricity sparking on her finger tips.

Sting chuckled in amusement, seeing the rage flicker in Katherine's eyes. The brunette looked more than happy to maul him to the ground as both of them got involved in a stare off. Before Katherine could suddenly launch an attack, a loud explosion echoed throughout the room as a huge smoke appeared right in the window. Katherine's rage towards him immediately simmered as she leapt off the bed and strapped on her boots and her gauntlets.

"Come on, get your ass moving," Katherine quickly went for her window, making sure she strapped on everything.

Sting gawked as she stood at the window sill, suddenly feeling the urge to vomit. "I'll take the front door."

"Fucking hell, don't be such a wuss," Katherine rolled her eyes sarcastically and grabbed Sting by his vest. "We're gonna take the short cut!"

"There's a short cu...?!"

Before Sting could say anything, Katherine had already jumped out the window and boosted away with blue flames burning from the lower end of her shoes. However, much to the Dragonslayer's surprise – he barely found himself vomiting. For whatever reason it was, he breathed in the fast moving air while looking up at Katherine. She looked so amazing with the wind tossing around her messy layered pony tail. He couldn't help but recall the dream that he saw. Were those her memories? He couldn't be sure but the mere thought of having to see her as a cold, ruthless killer set his blood on fire. She was so happy – her eyes sparkled mirthfully and her family; were they all killed?

"Get ready!"

Sting looked forward and his eyes widened, seeing a huge dragon soaring in the sky. "Holy crap..."

Katherine immediately flung him over as he landed right on the dragon's back. He lit up his hands and started attacking the dragon's back, leaving deep gashes. Katherine started firing blue flames as she began grabbing its attention, making sure the dragon stayed out of the way of any civilians. She immediately tore holes through the dragons wings as it screeched in agony, firing a huge fireball at her. Her eyes widened as she unleashed her own fireball.

"Tch," Katherine gathered enough blue energy before unleashing a huge fireball. "PLASMA BLAST!"

"White Dragon Claw," Sting drove his attacks straight into the dragon's back, causing it to buck. "Shit!"

The dragon continued putting more force on Katherine's fireball, nearly knocking her clear out of the sky. However before she fell, Katherine quickly powered her shoes with flames and rocketed straight towards the dragon. She gave the dragon a good flaming uppercut before zooming straight back at it again. Sting stretched out his hand as Katherine grabbed him off before the dragon could knock him down. As the dragon roared and charged straight towards them, Sting grinned in delight as the huge dragon opened its mouth.

"Blow it up from the inside," Katherine raised him high enough to aim straight into the mouth. "Now!"

"WHITE DRAGON ROAR!"

As the blast hit, the dragon howled in agony before shutting its mouth in pain. It glared daggers at Sting before trying to shoot him down again. The two battled it out in the skies as Katherine zoomed straight up into the air and went for a dive straight down. The dragon growled before firing a huge flamethrower straight at them. However, Katherine immediately zoomed out of the way as she dropped Sting onto one of the roofs of the building. She landed on the ground before grabbing hold onto a metal rod.

"Shock Time," a huge cocky grin appeared on her face as the clouds started getting dark.

Sting threw more white blasts at the dragon as Katherine started sparking up with blue electricity. "Uh, what exactly are you doing?"

Katherine smirked cockily before gathering up more electricity, pointing her two fingers at the dragon. "Lighting up the sky!"

The lightning suddenly shattered all the glass windows as a huge lightning bolt roared from Katherine's two fingertips. The lightning bolt smashed into the dragon, immediately lighting up as it howled in agony. The dragon stopped right in front of Katherine before letting out a furious snarl. Her eyes widened in shock as the dragon lunged at her until Sting punched its jaw, sending the dragon straight into the ground. The dragon roared angrily as Sting's eyes narrowed into draconic slits.

"I see, she is yours," the dragon smirked evilly, circling around Sting.

Sting smirked darkly before lunging at the dragon, letting his hands glow. "Well, your ass is about to be mine too unless you beat this joint!"

The dragon roared and charged towards Sting with a good headbutt only to have Sting's fist send it falling backwards. It swished its tail as the blonde got knocked towards the wall with the dragon rampaging towards him until a blue lightning bolt shot its eye. Blood splattered on the ground as the dragon roared angrily at Katherine as the Flame Dancer cockily smirked at it. The dragon placed one claw on its damaged eye before trying to swipe at Katherine as she danced around it.

"Heh, I've got a little dish for you," Katherine lowered herself to a sprinting stance with a determined smirk on her face, summoning blue magic circles. "It's called Blitzkrieg Magic! Ever know what happens when flames are at their hottest colour or light is flashing at its fastest speed?"

"You little bitch," the dragon snapped its jaws at her as she zoomed past it, leaving a trail of blue fire behind. "What?"

Before it could react, her kick landed straight on the dragon's neck and sent it to the ground. She could feel the sweat pouring down her face as the dragon nearly snapped its jaws at her, forcing her to tumble out of the way before it could gnaw her out. Using her blue flames, she boosted herself into the air before letting down a rain of blue flames from multiple kicks before throwing a huge lightning bolt straight at it. The dragon howled in rage before lighting up its whole body with electricity. As lightning bolts flew from its body, Katherine immediately grabbed a metal rod and stabbed the ground before rolling out of the way to have the rod redirect the electricity.

"I am NIMBUS – THE STORM DRAGON," he roared angrily before letting out a loud sound wave, throwing Katherine against the wall. "How dare you mock my power!"

As Katherine slammed into the wall, she winced slightly as debris rattled near her. Her eyes widened when a claw slammed her gut and pinned her against the wall, only to see Nimbus sneering at her. She scowled deeply before lighting up her fingers with lightning only to have it fade into nothing when the dragon just ate it. Her eyes narrowed into angry gold feline slits as she struggled and kicked against the claw.

"You motherfucker," Katherine hissed angrily, struggling to get out.

"You can snarl all you want, you little bitch," Nimbus growled angrily and tightened its grip around her waist, beadily staring straight into her eye. "But I might as well crush you!"

"You wished!"

The moment Nimbus turned around, his face met Sting's boot as the Dragonslayer hissed angrily and stood between Katherine and the dragon. The brunette could only gawk at him stupidly; how could this man insist in protecting her all the time? Why the fuck was he always doing something so reckless? It made no sense to her! She bared her fangs a bit before getting into battle stance to face the dragon until it suddenly heard a horn echoing from the distance. Before Katherine and Sting could move in to attack, the dragon suddenly took off.

"Hey, get back here," Katherine shot out blue flames, seeing the dragon fading away in the distance. "Tch, that little shit!"

"Kev!"

Katherine swivelled her head and found Nina hovering right next to them with her iron suit, gesturing them to follow her.

"Get your butt in gear, Maiqui's been kidnapped!"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**And that is Chapter 7! I will continue this story based on the reviews but as soon as this stops getting reviews, it's going bye bye. So, please review!**


	8. Kidnapping the Illusionist

**Me: Well, they did say update faster to get more readers so I'm going to do just that since my school has been suspended for awhile. Again, thank you for your feedback. It's very important to me to get feedback so I at least know how to mould the rest of the plotline into the story! Again, I don't own Fairy Tail! only own the OCs and the concept of this fanfiction!**

Chapter 8 – Memories in the Cathedral

Marina swallowed hard as she found herself being lifted by a dragon. Her eyes widened when she found herself floating over a huge body of water and in the claws of a dragon. How in the world did she get there? All she remembered was going to the Magnus Cathedral with Rogue and Frosch until dragons suddenly attacked them out of nowhere. After that, all she remembered was smacking the floor and Rogue's desperate calls. She immediately began surveying the area, trying to figure a way how to at least land safely. Sure she could easily conjure a mirror box but would it survive the impact of the fall and the dragon's sudden attack in case she does get out? She swallowed hard and squinted her eyes a little to see where they were heading. She swallowed hard upon seeing a huge cathedral in a distance as the dragons swooped in, preparing to land.

"Eep," Marina suddenly got dropped onto the ground as she summoned her mirrors. "Mirror: Concave!"

The mirror suddenly created a curved bowl beneath her as she slid into the bowl. Her eyes widened when she saw the mass destruction before her. Houses were empty and the streets had no people. The plants withered and dried up and wood creaked loudly with tumble weeds making their way through the city. The dust and the eerie silence sent shivers up her spine as she immediately summoned a group of mirrors.

"W-Where am I," Marina shivered in fear, looking around. "Hello?"

Nobody answered.

She felt her whole body trembling as the winds brushed past her. Shivering slightly from the cold winds, Marina embraced her body as her bare feet touched the cold cobblestones. Magnus definitely had a warmer feeling and she could wear her gypsy outfit anytime since she belonged to the Circus of Fear. However, she couldn't help but whimper at the ominous feeling in the air. She never liked going around places like this alone. Normally, Katherine and Nina would be the braver ones to go through terrain she was in now.

"K-Kev? N-Nina," Marina swallowed hard, shivering violently and fearfully. "A-Anybody? Is there anybody here?"

Suddenly, a dragon's roar echoed in the air and caused Marina to freeze in her tracks. Her blood ran cold as the snorting and howling of the dragon sliced through the Her eyes widened when a huge shadow loomed over as the dragon roared angrily and dove straight at her. Marina quickly made a sharp right as the dragon jammed its snout into the alley way, clawing at it angrily. Her mismatched light blue and lavender eyes widened with fear as she quickly ran as fast as she could, not looking back.

"Where am I? I don't even remember this... huh," Marina looked at the floor and found her feet making footprints, brushing aside the dust and revealed three rings connected with one another surrounded by twelve swords. "Wh-what is this?"

Suddenly, a cathedral bell tolled loudly and sent Marina jumping for the crates and hiding behind them. She let out a yelp and shivered under the fruits and crates, slowly peeking out from her hiding place. Her eyes widened in fear for a moment only to realize it was just the huge cathedral in front of her. Sighing in relief, Marina immediately darted towards the huge building and slowly pushed the doors open.

"Hello?"

The wooden doors creaked open and revealed a golden altar in front of her. Beside her, there were many wooden pews with wrought iron racks that held candles decorating the corridors. Her eyes slowly glanced towards the stained glass art. Angel sculptures decorated the columns as she continued walking to the altar in front of her. A huge cross stood in front of her as a man in white with a glowing halo stood behind. She swallowed hard for a moment, feeling the deafening silence until something began to play. Her eyes widened as the piece played as if it were on a music box.

"This piece," Marina started looking around, seeing nobody. "Why does it seem so familiar?"

The song continued to play soothingly as everything around her began to swirl around. Bright coloured lights shot out from the stained glass windows and straight towards the altar. A beautiful blue light began to swirl as some marking began to appear on the altar with characters engraved on the wood. She traced her fingers across it carefully.

"Who knows if peace exists," Marina squinted her eyes a little more as she continued reading the other portions of the text. "Who knows when it will come? But the only time you see ...Hmm, it's not finished?"

"It's quite rare that I see a sweet young woman in the cathedral."

Marina whipped around and found an old man hobbling with his cane, bowing and apologizing profusely. "Oh I'm sorry, I did not mean to disturb you..."

The old man chuckled lightly and hobbled towards her, shaking his head with a patented smile. "You are not disturbing anyone, my dear child. May I ask though – what is a beautiful young woman doing in the cathedral so early? Mass will not start until later on."

Marina smiled weakly, scratching the back of her neck. "A dragon kidnapped me and I managed to run off..."

"Oh goodness me," the old man helped her along into one of the pews. "May I ask however who you are? Perhaps, it will help me find your parents."

The blonde's mismatched eyes widened before she had a more melancholic look for a moment, hanging her head sadly. "Both my parents are dead..."

The old man shook his head sadly, placing his hand on her shoulder. "My condolences, my dear child. With whom do you stay with?"

Marina brightened up fondly at the thought before turning to face the old man, smiling cheerily. "I stay with Nina and Kevyn. Oh, I forgot – my name is Marina Kristallnacht! Pleased to meet you!"

At this, the old man smiled.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"How the hell were they able to penetrate our defences like that," a shaggy haired male slammed his fists on the table, letting out an annoyed snort.

Rothion raised his hand to calm the boy down, taking his seat at the head of the round table. "Ease yourself, Jonathan. Anger often times makes us miss minute details. Now tell me, was there anyone with her?"

Before they could say anything, Calypso immediately drew her sword and pointed it at Rogue. "She went with you awhile ago! I saw you both – if anything happens to her, you can most safely assure that your body will be sliced in two!"

"You dare point your blade and accusations to Sabertooth, you little wretch," Jiemma hissed angrily and stormed towards Calypso, shoving Rogue aside with a feral snarl. "You did no good job either in protecting the city...!"

Makarov immediately stood in between the two, feeling the magic pressure rise. "Now control yourselves, both of you! We are trying to figure out as to why they kidnapped Marina and not the others and also where they took her. Getting angry and letting your personal problems won't solve anything."

"No doubt they brought her to the palace in Crocus that's for sure," Gray folded his arms, leaning against the wall. "But I'm pretty sure they got her because she can easily create walls that can deflect attacks easy peasy. I remember trying to break one of her mirrors – it took me a whole lot of effort to get it down."

Erza nodded. "So you think they're targeting Magnus now?"

"Possibly, considering now that we're here," Gray looked out the window, noticing the gray skies. "I'm pretty sure he's going to try blasting the place into bits. He already has a dragon that can spawn little soldiers to overwhelm us by the numbers."

Lucy bit her lower lip anxiously, shaking her head. "There's also the fact that dragons have a high resistance to magic. The only ones who can take them out are Dragonslayers."

Everyone remained silent for a moment; what could Raios possibly want with Marina?

"I mean I know she's a bit of an airhead and that her heart's big enough for the whole world but really," Nina placed her feet on the table, rolling her eyes sarcastically. "That's kinda out of character even from the Dark Overlord of all Reptiles. I mean, Voldemort at least had better thoughts on who should his hostage be! She's useless in direct combat!"

Calypso clenched her hand into a fist, looking up determinedly. "Your highness, I will retrieve Marina personally! I do not intend to leave her too long on Fiore! She could get lost...!"

"Yeah yeah, we know Maiqui's a big softie and a weenie," Nina rolled her eyes with a huge smirk on her face, cracking her knuckles. "Besides, I've been waiting to give Zeus and my War Goddess Suit a good test run! This is a chance of a lifetime!"

"This isn't a game, Carol," Calypso snapped at the black haired girl, narrowing her eyes at her. "Everything is not a testing ground for whatever whacko inventions you have! Hasn't your mother told you anything about throwing out random robots, heiress of the Carol Futuristic Industries?"

Nina kicked the chair back in fury, narrowing her eyes. "You don't know anything about me...!"

"That's enough!"

Everyone swivelled their head to the side and stared in shock as Rothion suddenly slammed his palms on the table. Nobody had seen him angry before and Calypso definitely knew she didn't want to start now. Katherine remained aloof and silent, sitting on one of the arches in the room. Her golden honey brown eyes narrowed darkly at the people around her as she pushed herself from the wall, looking around and taking her seat on one of the chairs.

"Right now, we don't have any idea what Raios could possibly want. But we've narrowed that possibility down to him wanting to weaken our defences," Rothion pointed at the map, pointing at several areas. "Since Fiore is not a very big kingdom, I'm pretty sure Marina will not be hard to find. So, if we're going to base it on geography – the dragons are going to use the mountainous areas to their advantage. However, we can use that as well. We need several teams: one that can make a lot of noise and the others who are talented searchers. Any questions so far?"

Nobody said anything.

"Good, at least your heads are attached on properly," Rothion nodded lightly, glancing at the other members of the guilds. "Now, I must implore for your aid. Because attacking Fiore with a small group is suicide and the last person who has seen her is the Shadow Dragonslayer," –gesturing to Rogue, "Henceforth, he will have to go with us because he would recognize the dragon that had kidnapped her. From then on, our powers and numbers will have to overwhelm them with tactic and less brute force. Nina's robots are gonna be too big to sneak in but she can send in her drones to give a good analysis of the landscape. Guild masters, I do suggest you pick your members to send in. Those who can make a lot of noise and damage and others that are good for sneaking in."

Makarov glanced at Team Natsu with a determined smirk, earning nods from each of them. "You brats better not fall back!"

Goldmine grinned in delight, glancing at his _Daimatou Enbu_ Team. "Show them the wildness of Quatro, boys!"

The old lady glanced at her members of Lamia Scale, glaring darkly. "I'll spin you all if you don't do it right!"

Sabertooth had remained silent but nobody had noticed Minerva seething and stepping forward reluctantly after being nudged by Rufus.

"MEEEEEN, WE MUST SAVE THE LITTLE LILY IN DISTRESS," Ichiya gathered the Trimen, being answered to with a "yes sir!" from all three.

Kagura glanced at the remaining members of Mermaid Heel and nodded. "We're going in."

"Good, now that we know our teams," Rothion glanced at Katherine who nodded. "You're the best explosive war operations. After all, I did not name you just the Flame Dancer now did I?"

Katherine chuckled lightly with a smirk, jumping off the railing and landing right on the ground inaudibly. "We're going to split into seven teams. Five will be the ones to make a whole lot of noise and two will be to start searching high and low for Maiqui. Now first up, there will be some people I want specifically in the sneaker team with me. First off, Emo Boy – he's the last to have seen her and most likely picked up her scent. He's a Dragonslayer. Second, I need someone who can create shit in split seconds. Swords, guns and whatever – so the Stripper might as well come with me along with the Crazy Rain Woman. I need someone who can slip through the sewers and the pipes for better recon."

Nina nodded firmly, putting markers on the map. "Mermaid Heel's Kagura can be part of the sneaker team and Blue Peg can help me with reconnaissance. I need someone though who's got enough knowledge in his head to make Steve Jobs and Bill Gates look like kindergarteners doing their one-two-three's."

"That would be Hibiki," Ren gestured to his coffee blonde friend who nodded in response. "His magic is Archive Magic."

"Good, that makes my life a whole lot easier," Nina snickered lightly and began counting people one by one, glancing at the other members of the Circus of Fear. "What about those guys?"

"Our main objective is just to get Maiqui and leave but if we're gonna blow the place," Katherine smirked darkly with her fangs glistening under the light, letting her fingers crackle with blue electricity. "That's why the big guns will be attacking at the front line. Think about it – you got several wizards here that can make Zeref shit bricks and vomit rainbows. You've got Erza Scarlet, Buzz Lightyear as you call him [Laxus Dreyar] and his fucked up posse, Mirajane Strauss and Old Man Nekkis. Don't forget we've got the Circus of Fear with us. That fucktard better be ready to have lightning bolt shoved up his ass."

Jonathan grinned darkly with a twinkle in his lavender eyes before glancing at one of his teammates, cracking his knuckles. "I guess we're leading squads too huh Raoul?"

"It's gonna be like Minstrel all over again," Raoul chuckled lightly and shook his head, running his fingers through his crimson red hair sheepishly.

Rothion shook his head at the two boys, blinking and shaking his head in disbelief. "You boys and I remember Minstrel very differently."

_So this is the Circus of Fear._

Erza couldn't believe how someone who was around her age gap had the capacity to actually come up with a battle plan. In fact, she expected Calypso to be the one to formulate the plan and calm the two wild guns down. But then again, looks could be deceiving. For someone who was around 14 years old, Nina put many of Fiore's greatest minds to shame with her robotic inventions. Zeus in itself was a feat and those gloves that also managed to shoot beams and magnify her strength good enough to knock down Natsu.

"Hey Erza, hope you and Jellal don't mind being in the front row," Katherine raised an eyebrow at the swordswoman, pointing at the shaggy male brunette. "If you have any problems, I'll be making BB over there go with you."

Erza chuckled lightly, shaking her head. "No, it's no problem at all. Right, Jonathan?"

The shaggy haired male suddenly shivered before nodding sheepishly. "Y-Yeah, n-no problem there."

Katherine rolled her eyes with a sardonic chuckle; serves that bastard right for knocking over her cheesecake. "Anyhow, we should start moving. The earlier – the less shit we have to deal with."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

While on a ship headed straight for the Fiore continent, Katherine glanced at the other wizards preparing their things and splitting into groups. She groaned in annoyance before going up to the railings and leaning against the wall. She winced at every rocking motion of the ship, shaking her head. Suddenly, she saw a whole group of people going to one side of the ship and immediately faced down.

"Good thing I'm not a Dragonslayer then," Katherine chuckled in amusement, hearing a sudden beeping in her earring. "Yeah?"

"Kev, Fiore's huge but I got a target lock on Maiqui. She's in a city called Draconem or according to Hibiki over here – it's Crocus," Nina's voice crackled through the speaker, shaking her head. "My drones are already doing a landscape but there's barely any human life there so be careful. Most of your opponents will most likely be dragons. Secondly, the castle's in a barrier but I'm not picking up any signs of hostility."

Katherine nodded and glanced at the Dragonslayers, chuckling darkly. "Well, they'll do their work when we get to land. Right now, they look like their innards are being thrown out."

People gasped suddenly as the boat nearly threw them off. Katherine quickly jumped off the railing as she began to try to feel out the situation. Without Nina being physically present, she couldn't send out sonar to detect any movement underneath. Again, something slammed into their boats as a sea serpent suddenly raised its head from the waters with a deadly hiss. Katherine's eyes widened as scalding water sprayed from its mouth. Everyone immediately began on the move as another creature let out a thundering loud sound wave, tearing at the poles of the ship.

"Fuck," Katherine snarled as she boosted herself in the air, kicking down huge blue flames. "What are these?!"

Laxus immediately sent thunderbolts, attacking the creature as it sprayed its scalding water towards him. "Where did this come from?"

"Anybody got info on this thing," Gray jumped away, creating a cannon out of ice. "Ice Make: Cannon!"

Ice shattered against the creature's face until the other creature roared loud enough to shatter some parts of the ship. Gray scowled darkly as he jumped away, dodging the other scalding shots.

"Gray-_sama_," Juvia stared in fear as she took in the water shots, immediately throwing her own scalding shots. "What are these? Juvia has never seen them before!"

"Neither have we," Lyon unleashed an ice dragon as it crashed against the loudly roaring creature. "Whatever it is, it's something that's going to make us into its dinner!"

Natsu immediately gained some of his bearing as his unleashed a huge fire ball towards the sea serpent. "Fire Dragon Roar!"

The huge flame knocked down the flying creature before it dove down again with a lash of its spiked tail. Erza jumped high into the air, cutting it down with two _katana_ while in her Sea Empress armour. Jellal zoomed past it as the dragon tried to knock down Erza, immediately parrying its attack and sending his own meteor blast. She snorted in annoyance until something emerged from the sea and attacked it straight on. Her eyes widened when she saw Jonathan grinning with his own magic circle activated.

"Tch who knew that a Scaldream and a Stormrumbler would show up here," Jonathan grinned darkly as the ocean began to rumble and the skies suddenly began to darken. "Eidolon Summon: Leviathan!"

"A what and a what now," Gray gawked as he threw a whole barrage of ice lances at the Stormrumbler.

"They're rogue dragons," Jonathan jumped up to one of the masts, whistling out for one of his summons. "We have a couple of them who are smarter back in the island. These guys are the old species of dragons. We actually have a whole book about these guys. There's more and there's actually a job class for those who can't use magic but can train dragons – Dragoons."

A huge blue sea serpent immediately rose from the deep before tackling the other sea serpent down. Katherine, seeing Leviathan unleash its own watery blast, immediately fused it with bolts of lightning as it cracked at the creature. The sea serpent howled angrily and snapped its jaws at Erza until Jellal pushed her out of the way, getting his own arm grazed instead.

"Tch," Jellal instinctively covered his arm as he pushed Erza towards the boat, causing him to spiral down from the sky.

"Jellal," Erza tried to jump towards him only to feel her body suddenly get paralysed. "What?"

Her leg had a small scratch on it but she could feel her head becoming lighter and heavier all at the same time. Her body refused to respond as she forcibly dodged the next attack, rolling to one side. Kagura slashed down the Scaldream's attempt to bite her as she jumped away from its lashing tail. Milliana quickly summoned her Kitty Tube and held a tight grip on the Stormrumbler while Chelia smacked it down with a good Sky God's Fist. Gajeel immediately turned his skin into iron scales as the sound wave smashed against his body.

"Solid Script: Shield," – Gajeel saw a huge shield appear before him as Levy stood behind him, writing out another word. "Solid Script: Fireball!"

Gajeel smirked lightly; she had gotten more creative with her words. The only problem now was how to deal with Jet and Droy being the crazy morons that they were in getting her in trouble! Soon, a fireball shot at the sound wave creating creature as it rushed towards Gajeel with its spiked tail. The Iron Dragonslayer caught it before flinging it aside, leaving Sting to punch its lights out. Gajeel sighed as the water serpent lashed its tail at him until Rogue intercepted the attack with a Shadow Claw. The black haired Sabertooth Dragonslayer charged down the dragon while Sting gave it a good shot at the head. Katherine zipped around with blue flames shooting out from her fists.

"Hey, Pinky," Katherine cooled down one of her fireballs, throwing it at Natsu. "Eat up!"

Natsu gobbled it up with a huge grin on his face, powering up. "Thanks for the meal!"

"Fuel up Buzz Lightyear, Kev! He's low on fuel," Nina's voice echoed through Katherine's earring.

The Blitzkrieg magician nodded before spiralling towards Laxus, shooting him with a blue lightning bolt. "Fuel up, Buzz Lightyear!"

Laxus scowled deeply after unleashing a huge electric blast, taking in the electricity. "Sheesh, now everyone's calling me that now!"

The sea serpent raged against Leviathan as Jonathan's familiar kicked up a huge wave and knocked down the Scaldream. The other people on the ships started fighting back as well, with Lyon and Gray slashing past the Scaldream. Erza's swords clashed with the dragon's teeth as it tried to rip her into shreds. She winced at the poison seeping into her blood as she desperately began fighting back the urge to collapse. Katherine's eyes widened when she saw Erza about to be attacked by the Stormrumbler, causing her to zoom towards it.

"Your fight's with me, you little fucker," Katherine zipped straight into the air before giving it a good drop kick on the head, knocking it down straight on the ship.

As the Stormrumbler roared angrily, Sting punched its lights out with his White Dragon Iron Fist before kicking it towards the other end of the ship. Jellal stayed in front of Erza as he started deflecting attacks from the Scaldream while she slashed off the tail of the Stormrumbler. The dragon howled in agony and fought to take off into the air only to have Gray and Lyon freeze both its wings, forcing it to remain grounded.

"Tch, how long is this going to take," Rogue narrowed his eyes as he felt his head suddenly ache. "Agh!"

_Have you obtained the girl, Father?_

Rogue's eyes widened; where did that come from?

_**Do not worry, my son. The Queen has been secured. Thankfully, she has located the first altar.**_

The Shadow Dragonslayer stared absently into space, trying to make sense of all the voices. "What first altar? Who?"

"Rogue!"

Rogue suddenly swivelled his head as the Scaldream rammed into him, knocking him off his feet. "Darn it," – he rolled away, dodging more crushing jaws. "Crap!"

Before the dragon to scald him to death, Sting and Katherine jumped in the fray with each other's foot planting on both sides of the Scaldream's face. The dragon fell on to the ship before pulling away, fleeing to the bottom of the sea. Rogue breathed heavily as he saw the two panting and exhaling sharply, not even realizing that they had worked together.

"What the hell, Rogue?! You could've gotten killed," Sting pulled Rogue to his feet as the Shadow Dragonslayer looked absent-mindedly across the sea. "Hey, are you listening to me?"

"Who is the Queen?"

Everyone stared at Rogue stupidly as his partner gawked at him. "The fuck – what?"

"I'm hearing voices in my head. Someone was talking about the 'Queen'," Rogue tried to recall the thoughts he was hearing in his head, wincing in pain. "What was he talking about?"

"For starters, why is it in your head," Sting stared at him stupidly, scratching his head. "What the hell did you develop – mind-reading powers?"

Katherine glanced towards one of the drones floating beside her. "Nina, search up The Queen. Check all bases regarding mythology!"

"I'm on it! Hey Lates – get your butt moving," Nina's snappy voice cracked through the speakers. "Hmm, there's nothing here. I'm gonna need to search the library. Give me a couple of minutes."

Suddenly, Hibiki's voice echoed out of the drone. "I found it! The Queen is a title given to a woman who has the capacity to sing the Aria of the Greater Twelve. But that's all it says..."

Erza narrowed her eyes darkly. "What is that? It's the first time I've heard something like that."

"It's a powerful summoning magic," Calypso's voice echoed throughout the ship, causing everyone to surround the drone. "The song has twelve parts that are found in twelve different altars across Earthland. But the thing is – nobody has ever heard of its power being utilized in combat. Not after that horrible fire and destruction of the tribe. Descendants and members of that tribe had been wiped out and any chances of summoning one of those Greater 12 have dwindled almost into nothing. They even say that their power was capable of remoulding Earthland into anyway the person deems fit."

Everyone gawked for a moment as Rogue whipped his head up towards the drone. "Wait, I heard a voice referring to someone as "Father". Who could that be?"

At this, Calypso suddenly remained silent. "Describe the nature of the voice."

"He sounded old, more like his late 70's at least," Rogue bit his lower lip anxiously, trying to figure out who they were talking about. "Why?"

Calypso's voice suddenly snapped through the speakers. "EVERYONE, LOCATE MARINA NOW! FIND HER BEFORE HE FINDS HER!"

"Who the fuck is he," Katherine hissed darkly, preparing to propel the ship. "You better tell me who the fuck he is before I find some reason to burn your ass when I get back!"

"I'll explain on the way! Just please," Calypso pleaded through the speakers. "Find her..."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Wow, so you stay here all alone," Marina stared sadly as she helped the old man light the candles. "Doesn't it get too quiet?"

The old man chuckled lightly and dusted the book on the altar, walking on to fix the other parts. "Indeed but sometimes in silence, you also hear Him. He speaks not with volume but with depth."

Marina nodded solemnly, looking up at the statue standing before her. "Wow, who is she?"

The old man turned to face her and looked at the tall statue of the woman, smiling lightly. "That young lady is known as the Queen. Long ago, when Dragonslayers had first come to Fiore and the land – she was one of the very first mates to pass on her blood to those who are destined to become Dragonslayers. She was born from a famous tribe as well that harnessed the power of what we know today as the Aria..."

"An Aria," Marina repeated softly as she looked up at the figure standing before her. "Wow, she's beautiful..."

"That she is, my child," the priest chuckled softly as he walked towards her, standing behind and gripping her shoulders tightly. "And perhaps it is time your time in this play has now come to an end..."

"Huh," Marina suddenly swivelled around as her head sudden started becoming light. "Huh? What's happening?"

Everything around her began to spin as voices around her began to fade. The blonde tried to keep her stance but she could barely lift her arms. Her limbs seemed to get heavier and so did her eyelids. She could barely find the energy to summon a mirror. As her arms slowly began to lift to try and cast a mirror, Marina whimpered softly before finally falling into a deep sleep.

All she could remember was the light blue whistling sound of a spell before falling into the darkness.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**That's chapter 8! I'm adding a new twist to this story! Hope you enjoyed it and please review!**


	9. Wonderland

**Me: Hey, guys! Sorry for the late update! Had really bad internet and I got hooked onto playing Final Fantasy IX on my computer! Basically, I grew up with that game! It was one of the best games I've played – next to Final Fantasy VII and Threads of Fate. Anyway, hopefully I'll be able to update faster now! I don't own Fairy Tail! I only own the concept of the fanfiction along with the OCs!**

Chapter 9 – Wonderland

Everything was silent until suddenly, a huge water orb shot out from the ocean as the water suddenly crashed down to reveal several people inside. Both teams Fairy Tail A and B continued to spread out on the beach as they started surveying the area. Juvia reassumed her human form after she had used her water body to create a water bubble that allowed everyone to breathe underwater without getting wet. Natsu and Gajeel started roving around with their noses trying to pick up Marina's scent. Jonathan glanced around as his pointy ears began to twitch, causing his icy blue eyes to scan across the horizon. He bit his lower lip and glanced anxiously at the sky, watching for any disturbances. So far so good, he mused to himself before pulling out the map that Katherine and Nina had designed. For girls who had been raised on Magnus, they sure knew the landscape of Fiore pretty well. Well, they did have that Hibiki guy from Blue Pegasus but even then it was still a feat.

"To think Magnus swore not to get involved into Fiore's affairs and now here we are," Jonathan scratched the back of his neck with a sheepish sigh. "So, what exactly is Katherine planning?"

Erza glanced around before walking over to Jonathan. "The basic plan is we make a lot of noise and pulled out specific people to infiltrate the castle – at least from what I understand. Juvia, Gray and Rogue Cheney are understandable but why in the world did she bring Sting? And why were most of the mages distributed around now? But what exactly is Katherine trying to drive at here?"

"I wouldn't know exactly," Jonathan mildly admitted, rolling his eyes. "That girl's always been crazy and aloof. No one really knows what's going on in her head except when she's trying to murder someone with her blue flames because someone did something extraordinarily stupid."

Gray chuckled lightly while glancing around, folding his arms. "Well, she definitely picked the right people to do it."

"Yeah," Natsu grinned determinedly, punching his fists together. "If there's anything we're good at, it's property destruction!"

Lucy sighed deeply and shook her head with a small smile; at least her friends haven't lost their usual cheer. "Wait, what about the dragons? Won't they be able to sense if we're here?"

"Fucking hell, it's obvious. We fight 'em down – Bunny Girl."

Lucy glanced at Gajeel who sniffed the air while surveying the area.

"We're just here to get the girl but," a huge battle-thirsty grin appeared on the Iron Dragonslayer's face. "But if things get ugly – we aren't gonna back down! Especially when Salamander's around!"

Natsu bumped foreheads with Gajeel with a determined grin. "Oh yeah?! I'm gonna beat down a whole lot more than you, Bucket Head!"

"Bring it on, Salamander!"

The blonde Celestial mage looked at all the determined looks on everybody's faces before glancing at Natsu. She saw how cheery and determined he was and if there was anything fairy tail specialized at, it was property destruction. Although they were reckless, Lucy knew one thing: they were going to watch each other's backs no matter what. Cana chuckled lightly, tossing back her wavy brown hair. Gajeel cracked his knuckles before looking at the buildings while Natsu prepared to sprint off right next to him.

"Nobody hold back," Erza immediately summoned her Heaven's Wheel Armour, summoning her swords.

"Tch, why am I with these Fairies?"

Jonathan glanced at Minerva who stood among her other guildmates, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Come on, just make a lot of noise. Saber's got powerhouses good enough. Besides, Kat over there told me that if you don't – I might as well call you Cheongsam Bitch or Lady Meow-Meow until you – what's the thing Nina says? Oh yeah, calmeth thy tits."

"How dare that mongrel," Minerva lunged forward at him with her hands glowing, venomously spitting until Rufus held her back. "Rufus...!?"

"We might as well start now," Rufus quietly bowed his head in agreement, gently pulling Minerva back. "The faster we get this done – the faster we can get home..."

Bacchus chuckled lightly, taking a swig of alcohol. "Yeah, Min-Min – you shouldn't be such a stiff. Relax a bit ya know, you're starting to grow more wrinkles."

Before Bacchus could say anything, Minerva kicked his face with an annoyed snort before charging up her own attacks and lunging at him. "Tch, very well... If you insist on being foolish, I will have to show you the consequence for your foolishness!"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**Stealth Team 1 (Alpha Team)**

"Alpha Leader do you copy? All diversions have begun," Nina's voice echoed through Katherine's earphones as explosions begun to echo from a distance.

"Good," Katherine quickly gestured the other members to follow behind her. "Hurry up, you guys move slower than snails."

Sting glanced at Katherine who stood behind Gray, raising an eyebrow. "What the hell are we doing in a stupid cathedral anyway?"

Rogue glanced at the Flame Dancer, wondering what was going in through her mind. They hid themselves behind the statues, preying on two soldiers. But what exactly was she aiming for? The Flame Dancer remained quiet as her golden brown eyes focused deeply on the soldiers that stood in front of the cathedral. However, what caught Sting off-guard was she suddenly shoved off Gray without a second thought as he landed flat on the ground. The soldiers suddenly jumped, staring at Gray.

"GRAY-_SAMA_," Juvia quickly moved into position, turning her hands into water whips.

"Who goes there," they pointed their spears at Gray as the Ice Alchemist got up to his feet, staring in horror. "You...!"

Gray spun around, seeing nothing behind him. "Who the hell...?"

"MPFFFF!"

He quickly spun around as one soldier suddenly fell to the ground. His eyes widened in surprise as Katherine's hand covered the soldier's mouth before shocking him in the spine. The moment the other soldier tried to hit her, the belts on her arms unwound and wrapped around his entire body along with his face before she delivered a full on body shock. The soldier immediately went lights out as she lightly dropped him onto the ground. One thing Gray knew, a shock from the spine going to the brain rendered any man even if they were a Saint Wizard into a vegetable! After taking a blow from Laxus, that was never the prettiest thought. When did she drop down out of nowhere? Secondly, with those belts dangling – how could she drop so noiselessly?

"How the hell," Gray stared in admonishment as Katherine stepped away from the bodies, throwing them both at Sting and Rogue.

"Get their clothes and put 'em on," Katherine quickly leapt high into the air and glanced at the other members of Sabertooth, landing on the rafters. "After that, get your asses inside and have Cheney over there to follow Maiqui's scent. Stripper, create dopplegangers of all of us so that it looks more convincing. Rain Lady will go through the waterways and infiltrate through the pipes in the church. After that, flood the whole motherfucker. If there are soldiers, just make them shut the fuck up without getting too much attention."

"Heh, you don't have to say that twice," Gray chuckled lightly before quickly making four more dopplegangers, narrowing his eyes at Sting. "Although, why did you get him?"

"Get who," Katherine raised an eyebrow at the Ice Alchemist before shaking her head. "When the fuck did you decide to become a man whore?"

"Gray-_sama_, your clothes," Juvia gasped in shock, blushing bright red.

"Gah, not again!"

Katherine pinched the bridge of her nose before clucking her tongue in annoyance. "Just get your asses in there."

"What the fuck was that for," Sting gawked in admonishment at the spazzing body, blinking in disbelief. "You just turned him to a vegetable!"

Katherine stopped in her tracks with a sardonic smirk, calmly walking inside. "Don't worry; his brain is still working. It's just that he won't be able to scream for awhile or open his trap."

_Goddamn it, what exactly did those people do to her?_

He wasn't referring to the people who trained the Circus of Fear but the people before them. He still remembered the fires that consumed the whole estate and Katherine's howling rage for vengeance. Why would someone just set her off like that? What exactly happened? Tch, String scowled deeply to himself. He never liked thinking too hard but thankfully, he didn't have to deal with Minerva's bitching. Frankly as powerful as she was, the blonde wished he could stick his head into a hole and leave himself there until she was done bitching out.

As the wooden doors creaked open, Rogue and Sting walked around in the soldier's uniform with their faces covered. The cathedral remained deadly silent until Rogue's eyes widened in shock and found Marina lying down on the altar with her arm dangling limply.

"Marina," Rogue quickly left Gray and the clones, running towards her.

His eyes widened fearfully as his whole body shuddered violently. Her heartbeat dropped to a deadly low rate with her skin becoming extremely cold. He quickly removed his cloak and wrapped her body with it, taking her off the altar. Who could have possibly done such a thing? Draining someone of their body heat that fast? He pressed his fingers against her wrist, feeling out her extremely weak pulse. Rogue held her body close to his as he quickly made his way to the other wizards.

"We're done. We have to go NOW," Rogue quickly ran past Gray and Sting.

"Wait."

The Shadow Dragonslayer narrowed his eyes darkly at Gray. "What?"

"Somehow, I'm getting this weird feeling in my spine," Gray bit his lower lip anxiously, cautiously looking around. "This mission was too easy…"

Sting and Rogue quickly stood back to back, glaring darkly at every nook and cranny of the cathedral. The angels seemed to darken as the flames began to darken and flicker with the wind. The moonlight streaming through the windows suddenly began to change colour as the air thickened considerably. Winds whispered ominously as the fires on the candles began to flicker and die.

"My Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want."

Their heads suddenly swivelled around to find a hooded figure in a black monk's garb walking towards them. He carried a gem in his hand that started to glow brightly as the figure stood quietly with a sly smile.

"What did you do to her," Rogue's eyes suddenly became a draconic red, causing everyone to hear a draconic growl from the formerly calm black haired male. "Answer me!"

"My Lord and my God shall never desert me for I am his faithful servant," the figure continued to chant as an ember started to illuminate his sardonic smile. "He who belongs in Darkness shall be delivered into the Light...!"

Their eyes widened as the gem began to glow brightly and an enchantment circle appeared beneath the man. Soon, orbs flew out and began smashing against the walls. The mages quickly rolled out of the way as the orbs began eating away whatever it touched. Gray rolled out of the way with his ice lances shooting out to attack the orbs. His eyes widened as they continued zooming towards him until the pipes blasted a huge wave of water, revealing Juvia.

"Water Slicer," Juvia swung her arm and blasted the orbs away, taking her stance behind Gray.

"Shit," Sting jumped away from the orb as it started flying towards him, unleashing a huge blast. "White Dragon Roar!"

As the white tornado rushed towards the orbs, the orb simply absorbed it before spitting it back at him. His eyes widened as he crashed against the wall, causing him to fall onto the ground and forcibly sprint out of the way. Rogue danced away from the orbs while trying to lay a hand on the hooded figure attacking them.

"Tch, this guy has the same magic as the Lady," Sting scowled in annoyance before leaping out of the way, slipping through the gaps between the orbs. "Rogue, get closer and start hammering the bastard!"

"Who are you," Rogue lunged at him with black glowing hands, glaring darkly. "What did you do to her?!"

The hooded figure chuckled in amusement as Rogue's attacks landed harmlessly on him. "Do not worry, the little canary will sing again. The king simply needed her songs to make the world listen to her music. You will hear it soon enough."

"Tch," Gray quickly slammed his hands together before placing it on the ground. "Ice Make: Bladed Graveyard!"

Swords sprouted from the ground and smashed the orbs, causing them to vanish. Juvia quickly surrounded the orbs in a huge water ball before crushing it from all sides. More orbs rushed out all of a sudden as it began barraging her from behind before eating away the left side of her water body. She let out a yelp in pain as Gray jumped towards her and yanked Juvia out of the way. The water wizard let out a slight yelp as Gray found his hand covered in blood and his eyes widened in horror – how did that orb tear through Juvia's water body?

"Damn," Gray jumped away as he forced himself to use one hand, summoning ice shards. "Sorry Ul, I'm gonna have to use one hand for this...!"

The monk chuckled lightly as Rogue's attacks landed harmlessly on the barrier before him as more orbs suddenly rained from the sky and redirected the attacks of the Shadow Dragonslayer back at him. Rogue quickly rolled out of the way as more orbs began to blast towards him. His eyes widened as the orbs ate away the wooden pews and some of the columns. Where was Katherine in a time like this?

The priest chuckled humourlessly, watching the Sabertooth wizards fight. "You have nothing. The little canary is someone who should not be yours!"

"That's what all fucked up idiots say."

The priest's eyes widened as he suddenly froze in shock, causing Bedivere to freeze as well. "What?"

All the wizards saw the orbs vanish as Katherine had just dropped from the ceiling and suddenly appeared behind the monk. The attacks had just stopped as the priest began to croak and cough violently, with his body twitching. What people couldn't see was Katherine's gauntlet had a blade that shot out and stabbed the priest in the back. His hood fell off to reveal a withered 70 year old man, coughing out blood.

"Hmph, I can't believe you guys took that long to pick her up," Katherine glared coldly with her other hand sparking with electricity, pulling out her blade and sent the priest falling to the ground. "Let's go."

Katherine quickly darted out the door with the other mages, clicking her earphone. "Nina, we're out. Send in the airship to pick us up!"

"Copy that, Flame Dancer," Nina quickly began typing away, finally hitting the enter button. "Your departure time will be in fifteen minutes!"

Katherine nodded as more explosions echoed throughout the vicinity. Her eyes widened as suddenly a black shadow appeared in front of them. Sting quickly jumped in front with Gray and Juvia taking their places around Marina. Rogue held her tightly as a pair of red eyes gleamed maliciously with a dark grin.

"Fuck," Katherine scowled as she summoned her blue flames, narrowing her eyes. "Who the hell are you?"

"Forgive me; I am nothing but a humble servant of Our Lord."

The priest slowly emerged from behind the cathedral doors while pulling out a book as gems floated around him. "His Eminence plans to usher a new world order. A world where the moons and the suns can coexist as one and where all dreams can become reality."

Katherine narrowed her eyes darkly with an evil smirk and took her battle stance, creating electricity at her fingertips. "Heh, you're really a sack of shit."

"_Au Contraire_, child," the priest snapped his fingers with all the Dragonoids suddenly emerging all around them. "I believe you will be the ones who will be judged tonight."

"Tch, there are too many of them," Gray immediately powered up his ice attacks, glancing back and forth.

Sting stepped back a little, watching the Dragonoids roar. "Heh, I didn't know you actually had guards like these running around...!"

The priest chuckled lightly, folding his arms. "It is best you surrender. At least you leave with your lives."

Katherine chuckled darkly in amusement with a glint of madness flickering in her eyes, smirking sardonically as her fist glowed into a bright blue flame. "Well, you should remember this: for any Blitzkrieg Mage – there is ALWAYS a way out!"

Dragonoids unleashed a volley of blasts until the blue flames easily clashed against it, reducing it into nothing. The Dragonoids stared in horror as Katherine took the chance to attack, kicking up huge blue flames. She performed a butterfly kick with blue flames knocking the Dragonoids aside. Rogue shielded Marina from the other blasts as he transformed both of them to shadows while Juvia quickly whipped out water blades to parry the blasts.

"Now this is what I'm talking about," Sting grinned enthusiastically as he somersaulted over a Dragonoid while kicking one down, shooting out white blasts from his mouth. "Game time!"

Gray smirked lightly and summoned his enchantment circle, conjuring up a whole volley of ice lances. "Ice Make: Lance!"

The Dragonoids let out an enraged howl before lunging towards Rogue, trying to claw out Marina from his grip. Rogue quickly kicked down one, slightly cursing his luck. However, as another Dragonoid moved towards him, Katherine suddenly appeared before him with blue lightning bolts crackling around her. She smirked devilishly before pointing her two fingers at the Dragonoid.

"Lights out," Katherine chuckled sardonically with her cocky smirk, baring her feline fangs.

The Dragonoid roared in pain as Rogue quickly kicked it away. "How long until the airship gets here?"

"It should be here in the next five minutes," Katherine stood back to back with him, narrowing her eyes darkly at the other Dragonoids. "Tch, these things are really becoming annoying...!"

"White Dragon Roar!"

Katherine's eyes widened as the Dragonoids suddenly vanished, revealing Sting standing in front of the lane with Gray and Juvia taking their place next to him.

"Not bad, you cocky little punk ass," Katherine chuckled in amusement as her eyes narrowed into demonic slits, forcing her to jump out of the way. "Fuck!"

Orbs flew out at them as the priest chuckled in amusement with a serene smile, suddenly reappearing in front of Sting, suddenly inserting his fingers into Sting's chest. "Heh, no two things could exist in the same dimension."

Before the blonde knew it, a huge cut appeared on his chest as he staggered backwards. Sting coughed out blood before falling onto the ground, blinking in disbelief. How did that old man manage to move at that kind of speed? He quickly regained his stance before lunging towards the priest.

"This is the light that purifies all things," Sting quickly lunged at him with his hands glowing white. "White Dragon Claw!"

The priest chuckled lightly before easily dodging the attacks, swerving a few times before plunging his fingers into Sting's stomach. Sting's eyes widened in shock with blood trickling from his lips as the priest planted a boot in his face. Gray and Juvia quickly covered up for Sting as a volley of ice lances and water blades shot out. Despite his old age, the priest quickly dodged them and suddenly reappeared right in front of Gray before phasing his fingers through Gray's shoulder and driving a deep gash into the Ice Alchemist's shoulder.

"Gah," Gray fell back and slammed his shoulder against the wall, covering up the bleeding shoulder. "What the hell was that?"

The priest chuckled lightly with his serene smile. "A gift I must say – from He who has granted me the privilege to live another day."

Gray struggled to get up until the priest stomped hard on Gray's stomach, causing the Ice Alchemist to spit out blood. "Ugh...!"

"It's sad to see much talent such as your creation be a blasphemy to His name," the priest chuckled humourlessly, pressing his finger against Gray's forehead. "And now, it is time to meet the true creator."

_Drip. Drop. Drip. Drop._

"Eh," the priest looked up as the skies became darker and rain began to pour angrily, suddenly summoning a tall top hot. "Oh? It seems a water mage is in our midst..."

"How dare you," Juvia's eyes glared satanically as she transformed herself into a jet stream of hot scalding water. "HOW DARE YOU HURT GRAY-_SAMA_!"

The priest chuckled in amusement as he skipped away from the hot scalding water blasts as Juvia let out an electrifying wail of vengeance. Her body emitted harsh steam as the world around them began to rain harder. He quickly danced away as a huge grin of amusement as Juvia let out huge torrents of water as it crashed on the stone pavement. Lighting flashed and thunder rumbled as Katherine quickly pointed her fingers to the air and drew away the lightning before redirecting it towards her body, engulfing her own body in armour of electricity.

"Eucliffe," Katherine's eyes widened as she scowled angrily, boosting herself forward. "Emo Boy, get Marina to the shores! Regroup with the other wizards!"

Rogue placed Marina on the side before shaking his head, letting his hands glow black. "If I'm leaving you, I'm pretty sure all of you will end up dead."

_... Unleash Wonderland!_

**Do not worry milord, the Arias have been attained. Shall I do away with her?**

_No. If you do, I will attack you. Do not try for now. _

Rogue's eyes widened; what in the world was that voice? Where was it coming from? Carnival? I? Who was he talking about? He glanced at the priest who chuckled in amusement before the Shadow Dragonslayer noticed his body – not a single scratch. Marina remained unconscious as the other four mages began attacking the priest. Sting had gotten stabbed and slashed as he staggered back while Katherine quickly began her attack with lightning and thunder cracking from the sky. The rain created more clouds as it began to rumble and crackle to life.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**Stealth Team 2 (Beta Team)**

Kagura on the other hand stared in complete astonishment. In front of her, the hallway was littered with Dragonoid corpses and blood splattered on the walls as one member of the Circus of Fear stood in front of her. She couldn't believe someone like him had that kind of power! Suddenly, a Dragonoid lunged at the two toned haired male while baring its fangs at him. However, without even flinching or batting an eyelash – the Dragonoid instantly stopped right in front of him as the male slowly looked up at him.

"Hn," with this, the male snapped his fingers.

The Dragonoid suddenly began shaking in mid-air as it started coughing out blood violently before completely bleeding out every hole in its body. The eyes bled out bloody tears with its mouth coughing out a fountain. Howls of agony rang in the female swordswoman's ears as Mermaid Heel who went along with her stared in horror. Finally, the Dragonoid fell silent as he emotionlessly waved the Dragonoid away.

"Wh-what was that," Risley swallowed hard in fear, trying to stop her knees from melting from beneath her. "What we all had a hard time with..."

"He just reduced in ten minutes," Beth shivered fearfully, hiding behind one of her other teammates.

Kagura hated the disgusting smell of blood permeating the air and the unsettling feeling of fear in her stomach. The male stood quite a distance from them and she couldn't understand why she couldn't have operated under the Flame Dancer instead. Despite her cocky and aloof attitude, Kagura would have taken her over the man the Circus sent their team with. Apparently, he barely spoke amongst the many members of the Circus.

"What did they say he was," Milliana crawled weakly towards Kagura, hiding behind her.

_They called him the Contortionist but I didn't know they meant it in that way!_

Kagura swallowed hard and slowly walked towards him. "Excuse me...?"

However, the Contortionist ignored her before clicking his earphone. "Beta Leader to Romeo, all Dragonoids have been eliminated."

"Proceed towards the Rivergarde I – Marina has been obtained by the Alpha Team," Calypso's voice echoed throughout the earphone. "Good job, Leon. Head towards the shores immediately."

Leon remained silent before turning around and walking away from the dead corpses. "Our job is done."

"Wowee, I really got the opportunity to meet the Bloody Contortionist!"

Leon turned around, seeing a crimson cloaked figure as she dropped her hood. A little girl stood before her with pale pink hair with split-ends and a curly hair sticking out from the top of her head. Her violet eyes glimmered in excitement as she skipped towards him. Kagura's hand immediately went to her sword as she immediately slashed past him.

"Aww, he seemed," her grin suddenly became more maniacal, revealing a magic circle. "He seemed like such a good doll...! Doll Make: Christine!"

A doll in a pale pink Victorian gown suddenly emerged as she opened her mouth, letting out an extremely high operatic note. Kagura suddenly froze as the sound shattered the glass around them as Milliana fell to the ground, covering her ears. Risley fell to the ground as she clamped her hands over her ears. The little girl sat on the table, chuckling lightly with a sweet smile.

"Aww, come on – Rosso wants to play~," she sang impishly before summoning another doll, slamming her palm against the wall. "Doll Make: Jabby!"

Their eyes widened as a huge dragon suddenly appeared with its eyes tightly sewn shut and snapped its jaws at them. Leon leapt back as Kagura deflected the wing with her sheathe. Milliana quickly unleashed a cat tube straight at the dragon as it howled angrily. Its ears twitched angrily as the huge dragon swung its tail with spikes as Risley jumped over it and weighed down its tail.

"Aww come on Jabby," Rosso giggled in delight before jumping onto the staircase, sitting down and kicking her legs. "Get 'em! Off with their head~!"

"Tch," Kagura jumped out of the way before blocking the other attack, being thrown to the wall until she stopped. "Huh?"

Leon's hands were extended out as her body slowly floated to the ground. Kagura blinked several times as she glanced at Leon who remained silent for a moment before having dolls rush towards him. Leon quickly jumped out of the way before deflecting the attack, unleashing a wave of blood. Mermaid Heel's eyes widened as all the girls began weighing down the dragon while Kagura rushed in with her blade singing fast and slashing off the tail. Rosso moaned with a childish pout, jumping off the railing.

"Aww, I just wanted to play," Rosso narrowed her eyes into a dark and deadly glare, glowing with energy. "I HATE PEOPLE WHO STOP MY PLAY TIME!"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**And that's Chapter 9 folks! Please don't forget to review!**


	10. The Power of the Greater 12

**Me: Sorry for not updating fast! I had academics to deal with! **** Hopefully I'll be able to clear up things so I'll be able to type faster! I hope this chapter will make up for the slowness of my story! I don't own Fairy Tail; I only own the OCs and the concept of this fanfiction!**

Chapter 10 – Power of the Greater 12

Kagura clucked her tongue as she and her guild mates dodged Jabby's attempts to pierce them with its tail. Leon quickly regrouped before grabbing Milliana and Beth out of the way before conjuring a blood red shield. Jabby's thorns smashed against the shield as it charged towards him, forcing him to jump into the air and onto the wall to spring himself forward. He narrowed his eyes before lunging towards Rosso with the blood from the shield changing into blades. She had a huge maniacal grin on her face as chains suddenly shot out and darted around them. Risley jumped away as Kagura blocked most of them, ducking and rolling away.

"Bloody rain, bloody rain before I go 'Off with your head'," Rosso sang with delight, dancing around. "Tee hee, go kill 'em Jabby!"

Jabby let out a draconic roar before lunging straight at Milliana. The Kitty Magic wizard quickly leapt out of the way as its tail crashed against the wall. The other female wizards jumped out of the way while blood red tentacles suddenly sprouted from the ground with Leon directing the blood with whiplash-like attacks. He waved his hand as the blood slapped away the wing of Jabby before summoning up more tentacles from the pool of blood around him. Risley dropped the weight of gravity on Jabby as she jumped straight into the air, going for a heavy dive. Beth yelped as she crawled out of the way before Kagura covered her and went for a quick slash.

"Wait, what's that guy doing," Milliana pointed at Leon as three blood red enchantment circles swirled and appeared around him.

Araña's eyes widened as she noticed the bodies of the Dragonoids shuddering. "Where did these...?"

The bodies of the Dragonoids floated up into the air before standing next to Leon. His crimson red eyes darkened murderously as he glared holes into Rosso's Jabby. Everyone stared in shock as he snapped his fingers.

"Bloody Scroll: Dance of the Briar Graveyard."

The corpses of the Dragonoids suddenly lifted up and rushed towards Jabby before biting and tearing away the huge dragon's material. Jabby roared and howled before kicking and struggling to tear off the Dragonoids. Kagura rolled away before deflecting another wing as she launched herself towards the huge dragon. She weighed down the dragon as its wings crashed on the ground with the Dragonoids ripping it into pieces. Jabby roared and threw its claw at Milliana as she jumped into the air with kitty blasts smashing against the dragon.

"Kagura-_chan_," Milliana yelped as she jumped out of the way again, watching Kagura tangoing against the dragon.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? SHUT UP!"

They all suddenly swivelled their heads towards their Rosso as she clutched her head. Her eyes widened to the side of dinner plates as she began yanking her hair strands. She shuddered violently and let out a scream, shivering violently. Sweat trickled down her temple as her hand began to spasm and her fingers began to curl. Her mouth gaped open as she began screaming and struggling. Her eyes glared with a psychopathic gaze before grabbing the wall and banging her head against it.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! I WANT TO FIGHT SOME MORE!"

Jabby and Christine suddenly stopped functioning as the dolls started twitching and shuddering. Christine crumbled into nothing but little dust particles as Jabby howled angrily. As Rosso began banging her head on the wall, Jabby started running amuck and body-slamming the wall with an enraged howl. Rosso let out an electrifying wail as she began hitting herself. Leon quickly grabbed the other girls, casting a glance at Kagura.

"We have to go," Leon immediately darted down the hallway.

Kagura immediately pulled along Milliana and Beth, ignoring the incessant ringing of Rosso's electrifying wail.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Shit, who is this guy!?"

Gray scowled darkly as he sprinted away from the orbs that started crashing all over the ground. The Ice Alchemist clenched his teeth together before unleashing a huge wave of ice lances while Juvia suddenly unleashed a huge torrent of rain as it shattered the glass and the terracotta tiles on the roofs. The old man chuckled in amusement as huge blue flames turned the water into steam, revealing Katherine jumping high into the air and punching out blue flames. Rogue swirled around shadows before striking down a huge group of Dragonoids.

"White Dragon Roar," Sting roared a huge white blast as it smashed through the Dragonoids.

The old man pulled out a smoking stick with an amused smirk, suddenly creating a flower from beneath. "Who are you to defy the Emperor?"

"Tch," Katherine kicked down another Dragonoid and suddenly summoned a whole fork of lightning, gathering a ball of electricity and shooting it out from her fingertips. "You're one annoying old shit, aren't you?"

Rogue noticed the Dragonoids rushing towards Marina as his eyes narrowed into draconic slits. His heart pounded wildly as the blood rushed around his body. He could feel the howling from his fibres and the electrical cracks and burns from his magic circuits. His mana seemed to scream louder than ever as he let out a draconic roar.

"STAY. AWAY. FROM. HER," Rogue leapt forward with a vengeful roar of rage, cloaking his hands with shadows.

_Yes, don't you feel it? That sweet rush of power? That wild ecstasy? MADNESS! LET MADNESS BURN WITHIN YOU!_

Suddenly, a black purplish enchantment circle roared around him as Rogue's skin suddenly became jet black. His eyes gleamed with a bloody red colour while he bore out his draconic fangs. Shades rushed around him as the Dragonoids began falling down, one by one. The Dragonoids roared in pain as Rogue mercilessly dove at them straight from the air before whirling around a huge black wave that knocked all of them towards the walls. Glass windows shattered as Rogue let out a berserker-like roar.

"Rogue," Sting glanced at his partner before kicking down another Dragonoid, glancing at Gray. "Hey, freeze those bastards before they touch Marina!"

Gray skated with ice appearing on his feet, slamming his palms together. "Ice Make: Thief Hand!"

The hand quickly grabbed Marina out of the way as he used the sliding momentum to kick down the Dragonoids before slamming his hands on the ground. "Ice Make: Geyser!"

A huge ice geyser sprouted from the ground and knocked the Dragonoids aside before spinning around with a kick. Juvia hurled a huge water wave as the Dragonoids smashed themselves against the wall. Rogue leapt towards the old man as the orbs blasted against his body, causing him to bowl over. However, the Shadow Dragonslayer refused to stop as he roared angrily before rushing towards the old man once more.

"Oh dear," he blew out of his pipe a huge orb as it floated towards Rogue, exploding in his face.

"Gah," Rogue tumbled down on the ground before landing on all fours, launching himself like a demon before revealing a draconic and demonic feature.

"What the hell," Sting's eyes widened until Katherine suddenly slammed Rogue's head into the cobblestone floor. "Oi, Spitfire what the hell-!"

"Tch, this is why I don't bring emotional morons to the battlefield," Kevyn immediately let out a jolt of electricity, redirecting a huge bolt towards the old man. "Damn you son of a bitch!"

The old man chuckled in amusement as the bolt flew straight at him before blowing out another orb, containing the attack. "Interesting, so the little storm cloud managed to redirect Rogue's anger…"

Katherine and Sting quickly moved towards Rogue while Juvia surrounded the man from behind with her water form with Gray. Silence enveloped the battlefield as all attackers narrowed their eyes straight at the old man. The old man chuckled in amusement as he took himself off his pedestal. He glanced at the people behind him before pocketing his orb wand, pulling out instead a gem.

"It's quite amazing how someone like her can exist in this world, not many of them remain," the old man chuckled as the gem began to glow brightly. "Come forth the might Valfather – Odin!"

The orb gleamed brightly as a horse suddenly whinnied out of nowhere. A six legged horse suddenly appeared running from the moon and towards them with a huge demonic male riding on the horse. Katherine's eyes widened as she grabbed Sting out of the way while Rogue grabbed Marina. Gray and Juvia vanished from their spots as the sword crashed into the infrastructure. The horse neighed louder as it kicked another building down.

"Tch, this is," Katherine leapt high into the air, summoning a blue enchantment circle. "_Ressurecion de Monarca del Azul_!" (Rise of the Azure Monarch)

Blue lightning screamed out from her enchantment circle as the lightning encased her body as she zoomed towards the old man. The old man chuckled as her kick tore through the cobblestones on the ground. Leaping away, the old man swung to his side as Katherine slashed past him with her arm cloaked with lightning that slashed through a building. Sting threw a white glowing fist as the old man casually dodged it as both of them threw their attacks in tandem. While the two wizards continued to fight, Gray looked up and found an airship hovering above them. A ladder dropped down as Lucy called out. More orbs shot at them as it pelted against the shield harmlessly.

"Come on, guys! We don't have much time!"

Gray nodded as he slammed his fist against his palm. "Ice Make: Stairs!"

A long staircase rolled out as Rogue immediately jumped up the stairs with Marina's body in his arms. "Sting, Excellion-_san_!"

"Sting-_kun_!"

Sting glanced up to see Lector on the ship, waving his paw in the air. Juvia ran up the stairs, following right behind Rogue and Gray. The blonde and the brunette nodded at one another as the old man threw more orbs at them, forcefully splitting them apart. Sting jumped away and threw a huge blast at the old man as another orb shot out and absorbed the light before throwing it back at him. Sting's eyes widened until a blue lightning bolt cut through the orb of light. After shooting a lightning bolt, Katherine spun around for a spin kick with a huge azure flame and made a wall of fire.

"Goddamn it, let's go," Katherine grabbed Sting before rocketing straight into the sky with her boots exploding with blue flames.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Sheesh, what took you guys so long," Isabel swivelled her chair around, meeting them from the captain's chair. "I thought it'd be easy peasy."

Katherine scowled darkly and leaned against the wall with her arms folded, wiping the dirt from her cheek. "Apparently they also had their own set of dogs. They knew Magnus was going to attack."

"But how in the world did they know that," Erza raised an eyebrow, folding her arms. "Their powers were insane..."

"Majority of them were dark magicians," Kagura bit her lower lip, gripping the hilt of her sword. "The one we fought was a child... her name was Rosso. She had something very similar to Ms. Carol's magic."

Juvia nodded confidently, remembering the huge orbs. "Juvia remembers that the opponent was an old man and then he suddenly summoned this demonic rider-like creature..."

Lucy sat down before shooting up in surprise, staring in admonishment. "Wait, did this horse have six legs?"

"Yes, Juvia was pretty sure it had six legs," the water mage sat down next to Gray, scooting over to him as the Ice Alchemist slightly edged away.

"But that can't be right. I thought summoning Odin was just a legend," Lucy gripped the hem of her skirt, biting her lower lip anxiously. "Odin is known as one of the Greater 12. His blade was said to annihilate an army with a single swing and his spear, Gungir could destroy an entire civilization in one release..."

Erza's eyes widened. "How is that power even possible?"

"Whoa, that's so cool," Natsu gawked in amazement before resuming a more serious expression. "But where the hell did they get that?"

"Humph, who cares? We should seize that power," Minerva chuckled sardonically and strode towards them with an annoyed snort, folding her legs elegantly on the couch. "Make them grovel at our feet and beg us for mercy!"

"Power isn't everything, Minerva," Erza narrowed her eyes at Minerva before casting her glance at Lucy. "Do you know the other 11 Greater Powers?"

"Leviathan's one of them," Jonathan revealed a gleaming Aquamarine on his neck, pulling out the necklace from his shirt. "There are several divisions of these Greater Powers and Leviathan's an Eidolon. He's of a lower tier – the Eidolon Tier. The Aria are the greatest in power hence there being only 12."

Raoul clasped his hands together, leaning on his elbows. "Odin, the grandmaster horseman, was said to annihilate the tribes of dark magicians in one night. His power was so grand that nobody could compete against it."

"No fucking shit, with that kind of power and size," Katherine scowled darkly and tightened up her belted arm guards, winding up the belts. "He might as well blow up the entire Earthland with a single hit if you let him fuck the city."

Frosch glanced around before swallowing hard, tugging Katherine's pants. "Um, where's Rogue?"

Everyone looked around in the bridge, realizing that the Shadow Dragonslayer was nowhere around. Where in the world did he go?

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

_Oh Rogue, you can't escape who you are..._

Rogue slammed his fists against the metal walls, gritting his teeth. "Shut up, you don't know anything about me!"

_Aww, the story of Skiadrum being sick? You're a liar. You wanted the power! _

Rogue hissed darkly and glared holes into the air, letting his cloak flap behind him. "YOU'RE LYING!"

_Man, Sting's a pain in the ass. Always trying to be great when I'm the one who's better than him! I want his power! I will make it mine!_

"Shut up," Rogue hissed as he glared at the mirror, seeing himself with a malicious grin.

"Why are you telling me to shut up? After all, aren't you," – before the reflection could finish his statement, Rogue shattered the mirror with a single blow.

"YOU ARE NOT ME," Rogue hissed as the glass shards littered the ground, leaving him alone in the hallway.

The hallway became silent again as Rogue began panting and breathing heavily. He slowly got himself to move as his footsteps echoed inaudibly in the hallway. The Shadow Dragonslayer couldn't believe what he was hearing; where were all those horrid thoughts coming from? He bit his lower lip darkly before heading into the infirmary where Marina was quietly sleeping, hooked onto some monitors. The sharp beeping of the monitor echoed throughout the four walls as the Shadow Dragonslayer sat next to her, quietly clasping his hands together.

"I wish we got to her earlier then maybe," Rogue bit his lower lip, shaking his head. "She wouldn't be hooked up like this…"

"Hmmm," – Rogue looked up as he found Marina slowly sitting up from her bed, glancing at Rogue. "Eh? How…?"

"Marina-_san_," Rogue immediately stood up in amazement, helping her sit up. "How are you feeling?"

Marina nodded slowly and tossing out the wavy blonde tresses from her face, looking around the room. "How did I get here?"

"We found you in the cathedral in Draconem," Rogue quickly summarized the whole event; he wasn't sure whether or not she knew about the 12 Greater Powers. "Kevyn led the whole rebellion and things just blew up. Basically, Kevyn left them nothing but ashes."

Marina grinned and laughed cheerfully, scratching the back of her neck. "Yep, that sounds like Kevyn alright. She always used to say – "Why should I care? I just shoot them down and fry them into nothing but useless little meat chunks." Kevyn's really crazy sometimes…"

"No kidding," Rogue laughed lightly, noticing her remove her oxygen mask. "Hey…!"

Marina shrugged lightly with a huge grin on her face. "Don't worry, I'll be fine!"

Soon, they felt the ship suddenly lurch forward and the engines slowly die down. Rogue quickly grabbed Marina and held onto her as the ship continued to shudder violently. Marina yelped slightly as Rogue held onto her tightly as the engines lowered themselves to a low hum. The two mages slowly rose from their areas as they headed out of the door. Suddenly, the ship shook as a loud explosion echoed throughout the hallways.

"What was that," Marina shivered fearfully as Rogue's eyes narrowed into slits.

"Stay near me," Rogue slowly led her out of the hallway as his eyes widened with shock. "What the hell-!?"

In front of the airship, a huge bird-like creature screamed angrily before beating up a huge gust. With a flash of its dark violet and black feathers, the bird shot out more shards and pierced through the hull. The rudders and the fins rattled loudly as ship started teetering over dangerously. Mages quickly scrambled all over the place as they started checking the systems of the airship. The beast screeched loudly before swooping in the air and slashing deep into the hull of the airship.

"All engines sustained damage," one of the aviators called out from one side. "Engines 5 and 6 have sustained too much damage! All weapons systems are out of commission!"

"Someone identify the creature!"

"Ma'am, the creature has no ID!"

With commands flying out left and right, Natsu suddenly felt the urge to vomit as the ship threw him on one side. Wendy yelped in fear as she slid down the floor until Romeo grabbed her dress from behind. Gajeel dropped on the ground, feeling the motion sickness as Levy quickly started conjuring motion-sickness healing runes to get Gajeel moving. Laxus withheld his urge to vomit as Fried and the others tried to keep themselves stable.

"Tch," Isabel hissed before quickly rising from the chair, snapping her fingers. "Gearcraft: Mad Veil!"

Soon, a suit of metal armour emerged from the circle before encasing her body. "Kev...!"

The Flame Dancer nodded as she quickly kicked the door open and ran out towards the upper balcony of the airship. Isabel quickly followed right after her as the glass suddenly shattered with the air pressure knocking them back. Natsu tumbled back as Lucy quickly caught him with Erza struggling to hold on. Marina yelped and covered her ears as the creature screeched louder than ever before striking with its talons.

"No, no," Marina shivered violently as she watched the creature attack the ship. "Please... Stop!"

The bird suddenly shot straight into the air and spread its wings at the sun, absorbing the sunlight. The wings began to glow as it craned its neck to spin around its wild mane. With a strong beat of its wings, the winged beast suddenly summoned dark violet orbs that began quickly spinning in a huge circle. Marina's mismatched icy blue and lavender eyes widened with horror as she closed her eyes in fear. She tried to force out a mirror from her palms but...

Nothing appeared.

Her eyes widened with fear as she tried desperately to summon her mirror. Her mana circuits seemed to sputter and die out no matter how hard she tried to concentrate. As the orbs started growing in size, Marina could feel her whole body seize in fear and her magic shrink in comparison. She could feel her mind swirling and tightening in horror. Clutching her head, Marina hid her body in fear as her voice ripped itself from her throat.

"PROCNE!"

The bird screeched loudly before it stopped to stare at the blonde girl. Slowly hovering down to her height, the bird stared intently into her eyes with its bright magenta coloured orbs. Marina shakily stood up to her feet and took herself out of Rogue's grip. The Shadow Dragonslayer watched the bird warily as he let his hands glow bright black until Marina gently began to approach the creature.

"I saw you in one of the books before and I always found it so strange," Marina gently extended her hand with a tender smile. "How I was the only one who could talk to the altars whenever I was in the cathedrals. I wanted to know – there was always this song..."

The bird trilled gloriously as she spread her wings, engulfing Marina in an embrace. All the mages stared in shock as Katherine and Isabel appeared right next to Procne, holding back their attacks. The bird trilled and chirped in delight as Marina sang in the same tune, pressing her forehead against Procne's. The bird sweetly chirped before glowing brightly whereas an enchantment circle appeared beneath Marina.

"My dear Aria," Marina's voice seemed to change into a more gentle and womanly voice. "Thank you for returning to me..."

Procne slowly changed into a little stone before landing in Marina's hands, leaving no trace of itself.

"An Amethyst," Marina smiled softly before pressing the gemstone against her lips, feeling the warmth from the Aria.

Rogue slowly rose to his feet and walked over to her, staring in amazement. "H-How...?"

"Hm," Marina raised an eyebrow, cocking her head to the side. "How what?"

"How did you know Skiadrum's song?"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

As the ship managed to land, Nina moaned at the sight of the airship. Her poor baby! She fell on her butt and pouted at the smouldering wood and splinters from Procne's attacks. The Rivergarde I smoked out a little with the engine completely damaged and destroyed as she whimpered at the sight of her very first blueprint. She pulled out a little black notebook and began flipping through the pages frantically, checking for any possible improvements.

"My poor baby," Nina hugged the smoking hull of the Rivergarde I, whimpering sadly. "My poor poor baby..."

Laxus watched the snarky black haired girl whimper at the sight of her busted airship. Then again, he remembered the time he and Alastor fought Zeus and she. People were cheering loudly and started howling and getting more explosive. Zeus began smoking and he remembered how the metal crunched and screeched as Alastor landed the shots. He glanced at her pulling out a charcoal pencil and pencil, quickly scribbling away. He walked towards her as he found a couple of metal parts lying around. Chuckling in amusement, he quickly charged up electricity and attracted the metal towards him. As nuts, bolts and tools flew towards him, he quickly grabbed a box and caught the materials.

"Here," Laxus walked towards Nina and dropped the box on the ground. "You wanna fix it right?"

Nina swivelled her head around, raising an eyebrow. "Since when did you know stuff about building an airship?"

Laxus shrugged nonchalantly. "I may not be some engineer but I think I can get you the stuff."

"So basically, my gopher boy," Nina pondered for a moment and had a small smirk curve up her lips, rolling up her sleeves. "Alright, Buzz Lightyear! Let's get started! I don't expect you to loiter around! Get your crazy group with you. I think I may have some ideas."

Seeing her more determined, Laxus couldn't help but chuckle as he ruffled her messy black and red streaked hair. She scowled slightly before whacking his shoulder with a slap before whistling up a couple of droids.

"Alright guys, we're gonna start repairing this baby for the next war," Nina snapped her fingers as more construction droids appeared. "Get your asses in gear! Harvesters, go start searching for materials! I want good metal that won't break even after Maiqui's fat chicken starts pecking at it! Metallurgy, start heating up the welding torches and fusion chambers! Buzz Lightyear, I'm gonna need you as a substitute power source. Since Kev's gonna be fixing up the coup d'etat and the next attack – we're gonna have to make sure that Kev's got the artillery to make the douche from Fiore scratch his nose and pick his butt!"

Laxus chuckled in amusement, folding his arms. "This should be amusing."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

On the other hand, Katherine and Calypso handled the combat division. Soldiers picked up their blaster spears and began shooting targets whereas Katherine started keeping her concentration, creating bright blue flames suspended in mid-air. Her eyes remained closed while feeling the surrounding around her. The heat emanated from everyone around her as she could feel the heat brushing against her skin. The cooler area slowly formed targets in her mind as she suddenly opened her eyes and sprinted forward. As she glided across the blades, blue flames exploded from her feet as she zoomed forward before suddenly cutting the power and using the friction to create heat. As she slid along, she kicked up a sharp blue flame blade before shooting out lightning bolts to coat the fire blade and allowed it to smash into the targets.

"That's quite innovative of you, Lieutenant," Calypso chuckled lightly as she began practicing her swordsmanship skills, swinging her blade with a huge blast bursting from the tip. "The concept of inertia and friction... That's quite a synthesis."

"I just look for something that can shoot those bastards clear from the sky if they send aerial attacks," Katherine snorted in annoyance as she took her battle stance again. "But how the hell was Maiqui able to calm down a huge chicken like that?"

"Her name's Procne based on what Marina has told me," Calypso parried another attack from the soldier, disarming him before giving him a couple more tips on how to hold the spear properly. "Her power is wind-based hence her capacity to easily throw the airship off track."

Katherine narrowed her eyes at the red haired woman, standing stiffly in front of her. "How is it you know how her powers are like? Just who are you, Calypso?"

Calypso smiled softly, shaking her head. "Do not worry, lieutenant. I'm simply a commander of the army."

Katherine refused to relax her stance as she continued to eye Calypso warily before walking away, narrowing her eyes darkly.

_I don't like where this is going. I'm going to find out what the hell is going on!_

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

**Sorry for the really really late update! I had too much academics and now I realize I may be screwing up! **** Please pray for the best! And don't forget to review!**


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